China's 20th Party Congress opened in Beijing on October 16, 2022, with a wide-ranging speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping laying out the Communist Party's agenda for China over the next five years. Asia Society Policy Institute experts analyze the outcomes of the Congress, and what it means for China's domestic and foreign policies.

Why the World Should be Watching China's 20th Party Congress

Quick Analysis

In the immediate aftermath of the Congress, Center for China Analysis fellows shared their thoughts on the outcomes, their insights, and possible implications. We recorded quick analysis from:

• Bates Gill, Executive Director, Center for China Analysis
• Christopher K. Johnson, Senior Fellow on Chinese Politics, Center for China Analysis
• Rorry Daniels, Managing Director of Asia Society Policy Institute, Senior Fellow at the Center for China Analysis
• Andrew Chubb, Foreign Policy and National Security Fellow, Center for China Analysis
• Kate Logan, Associate Director of Climate at Asia Society Policy Institute, Fellow at the Center for China Analysis
• Lyle J. Morris, Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy and National Security, Center for China Analysis

In the Media

Domestic Politics

• Danny Russel, The Real Story - Xi Jinping’s plan for China, BBC (Interview)
• Kevin Rudd, The World According to Xi Jinping, Foreign Affairs (Op-ed)
• Johanna Costigan, The Two Women Competing for Promotion at the 20th Party Congress, The China Project (Op-ed)
• Bates Gill, I’m Not Optimistic That China’s Party Congress Will Indicate a Shift in Economic Policy, CNBC (Interview)
• Kevin Rudd, Security, Not Growth, Is Xi’s Focus, The Wall Street Journal (Op-ed)
• Kevin Rudd, Where will Xi Jinping take China next?, The Economist (Interview)
• Kevin Rudd, China Now Under One-Man Rule?, France 24 (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, West Should 'Buckle up' for Xi Jinping to Lead China Through 20s and 30s, ABC News (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, Xi, Like Putin, Sees Himself as a Great Man in History, Der Spiegel (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, Xi Jinping Aims to Conquer Taiwan by Force in the 2030s, Lefigaro (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, In Xi Jinping We See the Return of the Ideological Man, Sueddeutsche (Commentary)
• Guoguang Wu, Chinese President Xi Jinping to Put Regime Security First, ABC News (Commentary)
• Andrew Chubb, Xi Jinping’s Third Term: Growing Assertiveness in The South China Sea and What’s on The Horizon, Channel News Asia (Commentary)
• Guoguang Wu, 专访吴国光：漫谈中共二十大与其后中国的政治走向, Deutsche Welle (Interview)
• Bates Gill, Reactions to Xi's Speech Opening China's Communist Party Congress, Reuters (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, On GPS: China Enters a New Era, CNN (Interview)
• Christopher Johnson, Chinese President Xi Outlines Vision for His Nation’s Role in the World, PBS (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, 极权时代反抗的可能性, 'Who Gets It’ 不明白播客 (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, 20大结局与中国未来走向, 'Who Gets It’ 不明白播客 (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, The Upshot of the Twentieth Party Congress and China’s Future, 'Who Gets It’ 不明白播客 (translated into English by China Heritage) (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, The Party Congress and the Future of China, 'Who Gets It’ 不明白播客 (translated into English by China Talk) (Interview)
• Christopher Johnson, China’s President Consolidates Power by Surrounding Himself with Loyalists, PBS (Interview)
• Kevin Rudd, Xi Not a Return to Mao, Bloomberg (Interview)
• Kevin Rudd, How likely is a US-China War?, Deutsche Welle (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, What Xi Jinping's Third Term Means for the Chinese Communist Party, The Times (Commentary)
• Guoguang Wu, 吴国光谈中共二十大（一）：一场舆论被议程设置引导着走的戏, Radio France Internationale (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, 吴国光谈二十大（二）：习连任意味着改革之路不通 国际格局也将随之大变, Radio France Internationale (Interview)
• Christopher Johnson, Xi Jinping Expands His Power, Elevating Loyalists, Forcing Out Moderates, New York Times (Commentary)
• Bates Gill, The Power of One: Xi Solidifies Grip at Party Congress, Reuters (Commentary)
• Evan Medeiros, China Has Entered ‘Maximum Xi’, Foreign Policy (Commentary)
• Evan Medeiros, Deciphering China’s 20th Party Congress, Foreign Policy (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, Chinese President Xi Jinping to put regime security first, ABC News (Interview)
• Evan Medeiros, Georgetown University's Medeiros on China Party Congress, Bloomberg (Interview)
• Bates Gill, Why Xi Jinping Sees 'Dangerous Storms' Ahead for China: Taiwan, U.S. Tensions and Zero-Covid, Grid (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, What Happened to Hu Jintao?, New York Times (Commentary)
• Christopher Johnson, Chris Johnson on the Implications of Xi Jinping's Hold on Power — "Intelligence Matters," CBS (Interview)
• Jing Qian, What Xi Jinping’s Third Term Means for Science, Nature (Commentary)
• Christopher Johnson, 20th Party Congress and US-China Relations, Sinocism (Interview)
• Danny Russel, Xi Jinping's Vision for China's Next Five Years, NHK World (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, China’s Business Elite See the Country That Let Them Thrive Slipping Away, New York Times (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, The Return of Red China, Foreign Affairs (Op-ed)

Foreign Policy

• Kevin Rudd, Xi's Third Term May Offer a Limited Window to Stabilize EU-China Relations, Le Monde (Op-ed)
• Kevin Rudd, Chinese Communist Party Coachella, Pod Save the Word (Interview)
• Danny Russel, U.S. National Security Strategy Calls Competition With China its ‘Most Consequential Geopolitical Challenge,’ South China Morning Post (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, 'Guardrails' Advised to Safeguard Sino-U.S. Ties, China Daily (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, Europe is Central to Taiwan's Future, Les Echos (Commentary)
• Danny Russel, The New Version of the U.S. National Security Strategy is Getting Tougher on China, VOA (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, The Avoidable War: The Dangers of a Catastrophic Conflict between the U.S. and Xi Jinping's China, The National Bureau of Asian Research (Interview)
• Danny Russel, Xi Jinping Lays Out Vision of Fortress China Against Tense Rivalry with the U.S., Politico (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, Xi Jinping Is China's Most Audacious Leader for Decades, Argues Kevin Rudd, Economist (Op-ed)
• Lyle J. Morris, Xi Warned About Taiwan Interference — But Don’t Expect an Imminent Invasion, Analysts Say, CNBC (Commentary)
• Bates Gill, The 20th Party Congress & China’s Foreign Policy, China Global (Interview)
• Kevin Rudd, The Return of Red China, Foreign Affairs (Op-ed)
• Danny Russel, China's Foreign Policy Under President Xi, NHK World (Interview)
• Rorry Daniels, Implications of China's Party Congress for U.S.-China Relations, U.S.-China Perception Monitor (Event)

China's Economy

• Kevin Rudd, Several Factors Affecting Xi Jinping as China’s Economy Faces Struggles, News (Commentary)
• Guoguang Wu, China COVID: the Politics Driving the Hellish Lockdowns, BBC (Commentary)
• Kevin Rudd, China Economy Policy Shifting to the Left, Bloomberg (Commentary)
• Guoguang Wu, Safety or Stagnation, Why China's Isolationism May Backfire, Christian Science Monitor (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, 'He Is God': China's Top Leadership Is Set for a Reshuffle. But Xi Jinping Is Here to Stay, VICE News (Interview)
• Guoguang Wu, Analysis: How China's Xi Accumulated Power and Why It Matters in a Third Term, Reuters (Commentary)
• Guoguang Wu, China’s Business Elite See the Country That Let Them Thrive Slipping Away, New York Times (Commentary)

Climate

• Kate Logan, China’s Xi Jinping Affirms Net-Zero Commitment While Touting Coal’s Near-term Value for Energy Security, South China Morning Post (Commentary)
• Taylah Bland, Why China Won’t Play Power Politics With the US at COP 27, The Diplomat (Op-ed)