China’s Xi Strikes Defiant Tone on Party Anniversary
Marking one hundred years since the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), President Xi Jinping told a crowd of thousands (NYT) in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square that any foreign forces attempting to “bully, oppress, or enslave” the Chinese people would meet a “Great Wall of steel.”
Xi praised the party’s role (Nikkei) in creating a “moderately prosperous society” without absolute poverty, warned against Taiwanese independence, and said China opposes hegemonism and power politics. While Xi said Beijing maintains a “one country, two systems” approach to Hong Kong, a protest ban and heightened security (SCMP) in the city on the anniversary of its handover from British to Chinese rule reinforced Beijing’s increasing crackdown on dissent.