Jiang offers no clues on replacement

Though he's likely to step down next year, Chinese President Jiang Zemin's (江澤民) offered little hint as to who may replace him as he wrapped up this year's APEC meetings yesterday.

"As for whether I will step down next year, this issue will be handled in strict accordance with legal regulations within China," Jiang told reporters yesterday.

Jiang made the remarks after a CNN reporter asked him whether he planned to step down next year.

The Chinese Communist Party leadership changes are scheduled to formally take place at next year's 16th Party Congress, although power maneuvering ahead of the meeting has already taken place -- with older leaders working to hang onto power and younger ones seeking to replace them.

Jiang, along with National People's Congress Chairman Li Peng (李鵬) and Premier Zhu Rongji (朱鎔基) are all expected to step down from their state and party posts to make way for fresh blood. Still, there have been reports Jiang and Li are now trying to hold onto power behind the scenes.

Besides electing top party positions, including a new line-up in the powerful seven-member Politburo Standing Committee, next year's congress will also see a revamp of the 21-member politburo and the 220-member central committee.

During a 25-minute press conference, Jiang said China was ambitious to elevate its international standing through hosting the APEC meetings and the country's approaching entry into the WTO.

Jiang also vowed to deepen China's reform process and open the country to the rest of the world after its accession to the WTO.

Political watchers have said China's playing host to the APEC meetings throughout the year would undoubtedly give impetus to China's reform process.

When asked about China's stance on support for North Korea's participation in APEC -- which was endorsed by the group's leaders last year in Brunei -- Jiang said the issue would be contingent upon that country's desire to take part in the organization.

Jiang also said he thought this year's APEC meetings were "superb," and claimed the Pacific Rim leaders who attended this weekend's summit felt the same way.

"All 21 members, no, 20 members have felt this way," Jiang said, in an apparent slip of the tongue when mentioning the exact number of participants in the summit.

Taiwan was unable to participate in the leaders summit, because China refused to send an invitation.

Clark Randt, the US Ambassador to China, offered a diplomatic view of the week's events.

"Very successful," Randt said while touring the FedEx Air Express Package Facility in Shanghai.

But another American diplomat had her complaints.

"The security check was crazy. Four or five days ago, with my identity card as a delegate and my diplomatic passport, I was blocked from entering my office," she said.