China's heir apparent to enter world stage

China's enigmatic Vice President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), tipped to take over as Communist Party chief next year, plans to step from the shadows with his first high-profile visit overseas this year, diplomatic sources said yesterday.

The trip to Europe -- expected to include Britain, France, Germany and Spain -- is apparently designed to bolster his image at home and strengthen his position as heir-apparent to state President and Communist Party General Secretary Jiang Zemin (江澤民).

To his European hosts, it will offer a rare glimpse of the man likely to succeed Jiang in the top jobs in China.

Jiang is due to retire as party leader at a party congress next year and as president at the annual meeting of the National People's Congress in 2003.

Hu, now ranked fifth on the seven-member Politburo Standing Committee, was anointed Jiang's successor by late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平).

But his political future is far from certain in the turbulent world of Chinese succession politics and he remains an enigma to foreign governments, as well as many Chinese officials, analysts say.

"He seems to be edging into the limelight," said one Western diplomat. "But the man is still a bit of a mystery."

Hu raised his profile domestically last month with a widely-publicized trip to Tibet to mark the 50th anniversary of Chinese rule over the Himalayan region.

State media gave blanket coverage of him vowing to crush separatists and boost the local economy in meetings with party officials, soldiers, farmers and herdsmen.

Hu's European tour will help establish his international credentials but diplomats said he must tread a fine line to avoid upstaging Jiang, who continues calling the shots by holding on to his position as head of the Central Military Commission.

One of Hu's potential rivals is Jiang's protege Zeng Qinghong (曾慶紅), head of the party's organization department, analysts say.

China has had a string of anointed heirs who never made it. Hua Guofeng (華國鋒), named successor by Mao Zedong, was toppled by Deng in the late 1970s.

Deng's first handpicked successor, Hu Yaobang (胡耀邦), was ousted by party hardliners in 1987 and his second choice, Zhao Ziyang (胡耀邦), was purged for sympathizing with student-led demonstrations in Beijing in 1989.