The Central Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party recently held its annual so-called democratic life meeting. This year’s meeting communique had subtle changes compared to previous years, with the usual emphasis on studying “Xi Jinping Thought” no longer appearing. Additionally, Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong, who is not a Politburo member, attended the meeting. Political analysts stated that although this meeting seemed similar to previous years on the surface, it actually hinted at significant changes, revealing a tense and eerie atmosphere within the CCP Politburo.
The Central Politburo of the CCP convened its annual democratic life meeting on December 26th to 27th, chaired by the CCP leader Xi Jinping who delivered a speech. According to the footage from CCTV’s “Xinwen Lianbo,” Xi Jinping sat at the center of a round table, with the six Politburo Standing Committee members seated on both sides and other Politburo members around the table. Participants read their statements while Xi Jinping made comments one by one, a scene reminiscent of previous years.
However, this year, there were some subtle changes in the wording of the Xinhua News Agency’s report on the meeting.
In previous years, Xinhua’s reports usually began with an introductory paragraph of around 250 words outlining the meeting’s key points, often emphasizing Xi Jinping’s “supreme” status with slogans like “two upholds” and “two defends” to safeguard his core position within the party, and requiring Politburo members to “examine their shortcomings.”
This year, the first paragraph of Xinhua’s report noticeably reduced to less than 150 words, vaguely mentioning the official clichés about the meeting’s theme. Not only did it not include phrases like “two upholds” and “two defends,” it also omitted the mention of requiring Politburo members to “examine their shortcomings.”
In the past two years’ reports by Xinhua, there were usually six key points listed from the speeches of CCP Politburo members, including the study of “Xi Jinping Thought.” In the 2023 report, this content was even listed as the top priority. However, in this year’s report, the key points from Politburo members’ speeches were reduced to five, and “Xi Jinping Thought” was no longer mentioned, replaced by the need to “uphold the authority of the Party Central Committee and its centralized and unified leadership.”
In the expression of the Politburo members’ “unanimous agreement” in the reports from the past two years, the importance of “two upholds” in dealing with various risks and challenges was placed at the beginning of the paragraphs. However, this year’s report only mentioned the need to “profoundly comprehend the decisive significance of ‘two upholds’,” no longer in the first sentence. Instead, it emphasized the “centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee with Xi Jinping at its core.”
Political analyst Chen Pokong in the United States believes that although Xinhua’s recent report still mentions political slogans like “two upholds” and “two defends,” it only stays at a general level of explanation, as the study of “Xi Jinping Thought” has been removed, indicating a significant change.
Chen Pokong told a reporter from Dajiyuan on December 29th that, superficially, Xi Jinping still maintains a “supreme” status, with his speeches continuing to dominate and his assessments of Politburo members seemingly showing his authority. However, behind this appearance lies subtle changes.
He noted that in the reports from the previous years, the study of “Xi Jinping Thought” was explicitly required, even more so the year before, but this year, it was completely absent, signifying an important “elimination.” He believes this indicates a subtle shift in the power dynamics within the CCP, even though everything seems normal on the surface.
“In fact, removing the study of ‘Xi Jinping Thought’ is like a thunderclap.” At the same time, this year’s report’s focus shifted to “collective leadership.” Chen Pokong said, “These subtle changes in wording reflect intense internal struggles at the highest levels.”
Political commentator Wang He also told the Dajiyuan reporter that he believes Xi Jinping’s power may be facing some degree of restriction. He said that the detailed changes in the wording of Xinhua’s recent reports may signal significant internal changes within the CCP, but further observation is needed. The convening of the CCP Fourth Plenary Session next year may provide more clues to the situation, but it is currently difficult to draw conclusions.
In addition to the changes in the content of Xinhua’s reports, at this CCP Politburo democratic life meeting, the teacup in front of Xi Jinping also drew attention – there was only one teacup on his table.
In recent years, the teacup on Xi Jinping’s table has become a focal point of media and public attention. During this year’s CCP Two Sessions, there were two teacups on Xi’s table, while other attendees only had one teacup on their tables.
In the Two Sessions of 2019, 2021, and 2023, Xi’s table always had two teacups. This difference in the number of teacups was interpreted by the public as Xi trying to emphasize his so-called “supreme” status.
Chen Pokong previously told a reporter from Dajiyuan that the issue of the two teacups has been widely discussed in domestic and foreign arenas in recent years. He believes that one teacup contains tea, while the other might contain medicine or supplements.
At this current democratic life meeting, there was only one teacup in front of Xi Jinping. Chen Pokong analyzed that this detail might imply two possibilities: either Xi Jinping made this decision himself, possibly in response to widespread speculation about his health to halt excessive discussions, or due to some political pressures, Xi made this arrangement passively, perhaps to align formally with other Politburo members.
According to CCTV’s report, Wang Xiaohong, the Secretary of the Central Secretariat of the CCP and Minister of Public Security, also attended the CCP Politburo democratic life meeting. However, Wang Xiaohong is not a member of the CCP Politburo. Reporters from Dajiyuan found through past CCTV reports that Wang Xiaohong also attended the Politburo democratic life meetings in 2023 and 2022.
Wang He expressed that Wang Xiaohong’s attendance at the meeting as the Secretary of the Central Secretariat may be related to certain political considerations within the CCP. Another possibility is that Xi Jinping is sending a deterrent signal to the participants through this method.
Chen Pokong stated that Wang Xiaohong’s presence at the meeting may be a preparation for his promotion to the Politburo, or it could be Xi Jinping’s arrangement for him to monitor the attendees. He believes the latter possibility is more likely.
In conclusion, he stated that this Politburo democratic life meeting has revealed a wealth of information, exposing a tense and hostile atmosphere within the CCP, where they guard against each other, serve as enemies, and may even undergo a rearrangement of power, perhaps to be manifested as early as the Fourth Plenary Session next year.