HANDOVER: President Hu Jintao (left) and Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee and Chairman of the Party's Central Military Commission, at an enlarged meeting of the commission in Beijing on November 16 (WANG JIANMIN)

In his first address to senior officers after assuming the top military post of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Xi Jinping, Chairman of the Party's Central Military Commission (CMC), urged the military to unswervingly adhere to the absolute leadership of the Party and stressed the importance of achieving all military tasks, as well as the revolutionized, modernized and standardized process of building the army.

Xi made the remarks at a meeting of the CMC on November 16, where the official Xinhua News Agency said that the handover of the Party's top military post between Xi and previous CMC Chairman Hu Jintao, also Chinese President, was completed.

Xi took over the post of general secretary of CPC Central Committee and the CMC chairmanship from Hu on November 15, at the First Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

Xi said at the CMC meeting that Hu voluntarily requested to cease serving as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the CMC.

"Chairman Hu's decision fully embodies his profound thinking on the overall development of the Party, country and military. It also embodies his exemplary conduct and nobility of character," Xi said, adding that Hu has "pushed China's military development one giant step forward based on achievements made under the leadership of former CMC chairmen Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin."

Hu became general secretary of the CPC Central Committee in 2002. He succeeded Jiang Zemin as CMC chairman two years later in September 2004.

In his speech, Hu said that the leadership transition is conducive to the enduring peace and stability of the nation as well as the longlasting development of national defense and army building.

Hu described his successor as "a qualified general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and a qualified chairman of the CMC."

Xi, 59, was recruited by the CMC's general office and served actively as secretary from 1979 to 1982 immediately after he graduated from Tsinghua University.

In his following political career as local Party chief, Xi frequently held a concurrent post of the chief political officer for local organizations of the People's Liberation Army.

Xi was appointed vice chairman of the CMC in October 2010, three years after he entered the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, the Party's top decision-making body. He is also vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China and will be promoted to chairman when the current holder, Hu Jintao, relinquishes the post at the annual full session of the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature, in March.

"The CPC Central Committee's appointment of Comrade Xi Jinping as CMC chairman is very appropriate, and he can, for sure, shoulder great responsibilities while uniting and leading the commission to fulfill great historic missions," Hu said.

"Hu set a great example for a more institutionalized political succession," said Li Cheng, Director of Research at the John Thomton China Center of the Washington-based Brookings Institution. "Hu's move significantly contributes to a sound party-state-army relationship in China."

A more solid military

At the CMC meeting, Xi ordered the military to always put the country's sovereignty and security first, improve the military's deterrent capacity and capability of real combat to protect China's sovereignty, security and development interests.

Xi stressed the CPC's absolute leadership over the military and the armed forces' absolute loyalty to the Party. "The military must promote and appoint cadres based on their political performance and guarantee that 'guns' are always controlled by reliable people with loyalty to the Party," he said.

Xi also pledged to enhance anti-corruption efforts within the armed forces, calling on senior military officers to take the lead in obeying rules and regulations for self-discipline.

At another meeting also held by the CMC on November 16, Fan Changlong and Xu Qiliang, vice chairmen of the CMC, vowed to maintain absolute loyalty to the CPC Central Committee, the CMC and Chairman Xi.

Fan called for stronger governing of the army while maintaining security and the stability of the military force.

Xu called for better preparations to fulfill military duties and enhance the Party's organizations within the armed forces. He also asked all Party organizations and members in the military to reinforce unity and combat effectiveness.

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