HARI SREENIVASAN: President Xi Jinping opened China's twice-per-decade Communist Party Congress
today with a lengthy list of his achievements during his first five-year term, and his vision
of where he hopes to take his nation.
But beyond the words, Xi is asserting power like no Chinese leader in decades.
William Brangham reports.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The applause, the music, it was a reception befitting the commanding
role that Xi Jinping has taken since being named party leader five years ago.
He opened today's proceedings by hailing reforms he's put in place, and proclaiming a -- quote
-- "new era for China."
XI JINPING, Chinese President (through translator): The Chinese nation has realized a great leap,
from declining in modern history to twisting its fate fundamentally and continuously moving
to prosperity.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Over 3.5 hours, Xi laid out his vision to shape the nation of 1.4
billion people into what he called a -- quote -- "great modern socialist country" over the
next three decades.
XI JINPING (through translator): Achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation
will be no walk in the park, and it will take more than drumbeating and gong-clanging to
get there.
The whole party must be prepared to make more arduous, strenuous efforts.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Susan Shirk is chair of the 21st Century China Center at the University
of California, San Diego.
SUSAN SHIRK, University of California, San Diego: Xi Jinping has a vision of China's
role in the world that is much more ambitious than anything we have seen before, talking
about China kind of moving toward the center of the world and having a lot more influence
than it did before.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: In his address, Xi largely ignored the question of political reforms
in China, and he didn't mention President Trump or North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
But in a rare move, he did acknowledge that with global demand weakening, there were challenges
facing China's export-driven economy.
XI JINPING (through translator): While China's overall productive forces have significantly
improved and in many areas our production capacity leads the world, the more prominent
problem is that our development is unbalanced and inadequate.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Xi was one of the first foreign leaders to meet with President Trump.
DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: The relationship developed by President Xi
and myself, I think, is outstanding.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That was decidedly warmer than Mr. Trump's past criticism of China and
its economic and trade policies.
But other U.S. officials are more critical of Beijing's actions.
REX TILLERSON, U.S. Secretary of State: China, while rising alongside India, has done so
less responsibly.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Secretary of State Rex Tillerson today criticized China's aggressive displays
of economic and military power, particularly its expansion on manmade islands in the South
China Sea.
REX TILLERSON: We will not shrink from China's challenges to the rules-based order, and where
China subverts the sovereignty of neighboring countries and disadvantages the U.S. and our
friends.
SUSAN SHIRK: I think there are things to worry about in Chinese foreign policy that are mostly
related to these maritime sovereignty issues and to a kind of bullying in Asia, but the
global ambition could turn out to be positive.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Susan Shirk says China has filled a vacuum left by the United States'
withdrawal from global agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Paris climate
accords.
Perhaps the most important thing to watch for in the next few days is who Xi establishes
as his likely successor.
SUSAN SHIRK: That is why there is a lot of speculation now that he may be trying, much
like Putin, to stay on beyond his normal term or to rule behind the scenes even after he
retires.
WILLIAM BRANGHAM: President Trump will be traveling to Beijing to meet Xi next month.
For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm William Brangham.