This week, Chinese leader Xi Jinping is convening a key political meeting at which he will push the next five-year plan to strengthen the country’s economy – the world’s second-largest – amid rising tensions in relations with the United States.
The gathering, known as the Fourth Plenum, gives Xi the opportunity to showcase China’s characteristic style of economic planning and tight control over the political system, just days before a possible meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of an international summit in South Korea.
To external observers it will be interesting to see the inner workings of the enigmatic Communist Party, as the intrigue intensified on Friday when state media reported the removal of the second-ranked general – the highest-level purge in the anti-corruption crackdown within the armed forces.
This congress comes at a critical moment for Beijing. The party leadership sees itself as able to navigate an increasingly hostile global landscape – through tension in trade with the United States and rising restrictions on access to Western technology – while addressing deep domestic economic problems.
More than 300 Central Committee delegates, with and without voting rights, will gather in Beijing for a closed plenary – one of seven meetings typically held over five years between party congresses.
The gathered elites will focus on reviewing proposals for the future five-year plan, a strategic document that will set national priorities and shape how the country will respond to growing global and domestic pressures.
The expected plan, which will run from 2026 through the end of the decade, emphasizes economic security and technological innovation in areas such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, new energy, and biotechnology.
However this is not the only item on the agenda – the conclave could also include personnel reshuffles if new officials are appointed to key positions vacated during the purges.
The instigators of the conflict urged other citizens to commit illegal acts, involving women and minors. As a result, stones and bricks began to be hurled at border guards and official vehicles, the press service said.
Key Moments of the Plenum and Expectations
The agenda envisions publicly unveiling details of the future five-year plan after it is approved by the legislative body in March of the following year. However, Xi Jinping has already signaled clear priorities – pursuit of “high-quality development” for the remainder of the decade.
This period, experts expect, will likely keep Xi at the helm of the party and state – as he has held a third term since 2022 and has not yet named a successor.
Earlier this year, Xi urged provincial leaders to focus on developing new and future sectors and breakthroughs in advanced technologies, while coordinating “development and security” and taking into account internal and external risks.
China has already made significant progress in high-tech sectors such as electric vehicles, solar panels and batteries, and is quickly catching up with the United States in other advanced areas – semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and biotechnology – which are included in the current five-year plan that ends this year.
Yet the industrial sector’s innovative potential is grappling with overcapacity in production. Rising output has sparked concerns among trading partners, who accuse China of over-saturating world markets, while contributing to ongoing deflation and price wars among domestic rivals.
The economy also needs rebalancing amid a prolonged property sector downturn, persistent deflation, weak consumer demand, and high youth unemployment, as well as long-term problems of shrinking and aging population.
Many experts expect that Xi will largely stay on the chosen policy course, with possible targeted adjustments.
There is little basis for believing that the new five-year plan will deviate from the course, given that Xi Jinping now has a very tight grip on the entire system… and he does not need big headlines or initiatives at this stage.
There will also be close watch on possible personnel changes in the Central Military Commission, which commands the army of millions. It is known that Xi’s anti-corruption purge has touched members of the CMC: since 2023, three of its six members have been dismissed, including the second-ranked general He Weidong.
The announcement of his removal on Friday confirmed months of speculation about his fate after he disappeared from public space in March of last year. He had served as vice chairman of the CMC and was a member of the 24-member Politburo – the second-highest rank in the leadership of the Communist Party.
His removal from the party was announced together with the ousting of another Central Military Commission member, Miao Hua, who was dismissed from his military post in June, as well as seven other officers. All are suspected of serious crimes tied to large-scale financial abuses, state media reported.
This schedule leaves an unusually large number of vacancies in the Central Committee, which began its term in 2022 with 205 members and 171 alternate members. About a dozen seats are expected to be filled by alternates during this plenum.
It is unclear whether Xi will renew the personnel in the CMC under his leadership, or prefer to maintain tight control over a smaller group.
Current vacancies in the Central Committee and other possible disciplinary steps this week could lead to the “largest personnel shake-up” at a plenum since 2017, according to Neil Thomas, a fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute.
“Purges do not weaken but strengthen Xi’s grip on the party and the People’s Liberation Army. Every Central Committee member understands that their future depends on whether they stay in good standing with Xi,” he said.
Material prepared by Nectar Han and John Liu for CNN.
