The People’s Republic of China (PRC), founded in 1949 by the Communist Party of China (CPC) which has led it since then, is one of the major powers internationally. The ideology of the CPC is socialist, but with ‘Chinese characteristics’ and among the guidelines appear not only the fundamental texts of Marxism-Leninism, but also the contributions of major Chinese leaders: the thought of Mao Zedong, the ‘Four modernizations’ by Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin’s ‘Three Representations’, and Hu Jintao’s ‘Harmonious Society’. From the period of foreign concessions and isolation following the Korean War of the 1950s, the PrcIt has managed to rebuild a network of international connections, to be admitted to the United Nations (A) in 1971 and get the seat on the Security Council before occupied by Taiwan. Opposition to international recognition of the latter has been a feature of Chinese foreign policy since the 1950s.
According to prozipcodes, Beijing’s foreign policy is traditionally based on the ‘five principles of peaceful coexistence’. Formulated in the 1950s and further developed through participation in events such as the Afro-Asian Conference in Bandung, these principles envisage mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in all internal affairs, and equality, mutual benefit and peaceful coexistence between countries. The practice with which Beijing is trying to insert itself in international issues, as in Syria and Libya, is built on the lines of anti-imperialism of the Maoist era and highlights the two faces with which today’s China manifests itself: the conservative and the innovator. Preferred area of intervention for China is Southeast Asia.Asean) and the adhesion to the Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) reveal the Chinese willingness to position itself as a regional power and start long-term economic collaborations in developing countries. The South China Sea, however, is the scene of territorial conflicts for the control of areas potentially rich in energy sources, such as the Diaoyu Islands (or Senkaku, de facto controlled by Japan since 1895) and the Spratly Islands. The Communist government in Beijing claims these areas as ‘historically’ Chinese – even with the creation of artificial islands – and this creates tensions with more than one neighboring nation. Beijing’s influence then finds a limit in the economic ties that the US hasentertain with the continent’s most promising economies. Therefore, diplomatic relations between China and the United States constitute one of the central points for the People’s Republic to present itself as a responsible actor and obtain the consent of the international community. The second director of Chinese diplomatic action focuses on Central Asia. In 2013, the PRC took over the rotating presidency of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (Rats) within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Sco), which brings together China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia and Kyrgyzstan and which India and Pakistan will join. At the September 2014 summit, Beijing undertook to expand economic cooperation with Central Asia, an area not only of great importance for raw materials, but also for the strategic position it occupies. To strengthen relations with neighboring countries, in autumn 2014 China launched an ambitious economic cooperation project, called ‘One belt, one way’ consisting of the New Silk Road, both land and sea, across Central Asia and South. -East Asia. The Ratsinstead he deals with the problems of Islamic fundamentalism, another hot topic for China, especially in the autonomous Uyghur region of Xinjiang. Also at the same summit, Xi Jinping wanted to strengthen regional stability by launching anti-religious extremism and anti-terrorism programs.
The Chinese commitment in Africa can instead be considered traditional: China has taken on it since the 1960s. From the competition with the Soviet Union and the proposition of a common ideal constituted by the Third World, we have passed to a policy of commercial relations devoid of political veins. Mainly raw materials come from African countries: China, on the other hand, exports its low-cost products, builds infrastructure and invests in services. The main countries concerned are Angola, Ghana, Sudan and Zimbabwe.
Institutional organization and internal politics
The political class governing the People’s Republic of China comes from the CPC which, through a national congress, elects a central committee every five years, in which the most influential personalities of the country sit. Within the central committee, in addition to the main party offices, two restricted commissions are designated that bring together those who hold the highest positions in the state, the Politburo (made up of 25 members) and its Standing Committee (made up of seven members). The national leader occupies three positions by convention: secretary general of the CPC, president of the PRC and of the Central Military Commission (CMC), a body that directs the army.
As for the structure of the state, the four Constitutions of China (1954, 1975, 1978, 1982) have placed the National People’s Assembly as the supreme legislative body, composed of a single chamber, whose representatives are elected in several shifts and come from the provinces, autonomous regions, autonomous municipalities, special administrative regions (SARs), the army and national minorities. Elected for a five-year term, the Assembly meets once a year, but elects a standing committee chaired by the general secretary of the CPC. The Assembly ratifies the office of Prime Minister of the Council of State, appointed by the President of the Republic, and the members of the Standing Committee of the Assembly, appointed by the Prime Minister and invested by the President. The council of state constitutes the executive power and is made up of premier, vice premier, councilors of state and ministers.
With the 18th National Congress of the CPC, held in November 2012, Xi Jinping was appointed to lead the party and, in March 2013, the 12th National People’s Assembly appointed Li Keqiang as prime minister. This is the fifth generation of Communist Chinese politicians. After the first generation of Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping, who formally never assumed the leadership of the party, promoted both the controlled opening to the market and a new political class, represented by Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang. The slowdown in the reform program and the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 heralded the transition to the third generation, that of Jiang Zemin, Li Peng and Zhu Rongji, which promoted the development of economic production, the search for greater political consensus and growth. cultural and educational.
At the top of the judicial system is a supreme court which, according to the Constitution, should be completely independent while maintaining the leadership principle of the CPC. Administratively, China is divided into twenty-two provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities and two special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macao).
