https://www.scmp.com/rss/189012/feed Born in 1950, Li holds a Bachelor's degree in mathematics from Fudan University, a Master's degree in economics from Beijing University, and a doctorate in law from the Central Party School. He rose up the ranks in Jiangsu Province and served as provincial party chief between 2002 and 2007, and has headed the Communist Party's Central Organization Department since 2007. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Vice-President Li Yuanchao sets off for North Korea today to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Korean war in a visit that analysts say shows Beijing still regards Pyongyang as a close partner. Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said in a statement yesterday that Li would begin his visit to Pyongyang today and end it on Sunday. Li, who narrowly missed a spot on the Politburo's supreme Standing Committee last year, is the highest-ranking Chinese official to visit North Korea since Kim... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1290063/li-yuanchaos-north-korea-trip-shows-pyongyang-still-key-partner-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1290063/li-yuanchaos-north-korea-trip-shows-pyongyang-still-key-partner-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Jul 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Chinese Vice-President Li Yuanchao on Tuesday called on a group of Hong Kong youth representatives visiting in Beijing to support the “one country, two systems” principle under which the city was reunified with China and to inherit the spirit of patriotism. “Judging from Hong Kong’s development of the past 16 years, ‘one country, two systems’ formula has worked well and should continue to do so in the future. I hope all of you become the supporters of the system,” news agency Xinhua quoted Li... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1289788/li-yuanchao-urges-visiting-hong-kong-youth-support-one-country-two?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1289788/li-yuanchao-urges-visiting-hong-kong-youth-support-one-country-two?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Jul 2013 06:35:28 +0000 Vice-President Li Yuanchao wrapped up a low-profile trip to Guangdong at the weekend, a visit analysts described as a gesture of loyalty to President Xi Jinping. The Guangdong-based Nanfang Daily reported yesterday that Li concluded his three-day trip on Sunday, having visited Zhuhai and Jiangmen. Li, who plays a leading role in both Hong Kong and Macau affairs for the Communist Party, urged Guangdong to "proactively" seek closer co-operation with the two neighbouring cities. Accompanied by... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1205789/li-yuanchaos-trip-show-support-president-xi-jinping-say-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1205789/li-yuanchaos-trip-show-support-president-xi-jinping-say-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Vice-President Li Yuanchao made his diplomatic debut in his new role in a meeting with Japanese business leaders in Beijing yesterday. Li was the highest-level official to attend the three-day Japan-China Economic Association meeting, which ends today. The meeting came amid Japanese media reports that Japan may send Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso to China next month. Speaking after the meeting with Li, some members of the Japanese business delegation said he had struck a softer tone over the two... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1197554/vice-president-adopts-softer-tone-diaoyu-disputes-japanese-delegation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1197554/vice-president-adopts-softer-tone-diaoyu-disputes-japanese-delegation?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Mar 2013 16:00:00 +0000 A group of influential Japanese business leaders is due to meet Vice-President Li Yuanchao today in Beijing in an effort to improve soured relations between the two countries. The 16-member mission from the Japan-China Economic Association, led by Toyota chairman Fujio Cho, was originally scheduled to visit in September, as the group has met top Chinese politicians frequently since 1972, but the trip was cancelled amid rising tensions over the sovereignty of uninhabited islands in the East China... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1196670/japanese-corporate-leaders-visit-beijing-effort-mend-ties?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1196670/japanese-corporate-leaders-visit-beijing-effort-mend-ties?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Mar 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Before the bishop blesses his people, I ask you to pray to the Lord that he will bless me Pope Francis   Li will at least have plenty of chances to meet foreign visitors in that prestigious, if powerless, position Analyst Chen Ziming on new Vice-President Li Yuanchao   I have no doubt … that the Hong Kong judiciary will remain the vigorous, independent, well-respected institution that it is today Mr Justice Michael Hartmann https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1190974/who-said-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1190974/who-said-it?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Mar 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Yesterday's announcement that Li Yuanchao, a top ally of former president Hu Jintao , had been appointed vice-president was a much more low-key affair than when Xi Jinping, the new president, got the job five years ago. Li, who failed to land a seat on the Communist Party's powerful Politburo Standing Committee last year, received tepid applause before sitting down somewhat awkwardly after bowing, blank-faced, to around 2,600 National People's Congress deputies in the Great Hall of the People in... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1191014/vice-president-li-yuanchao-draws-subdued-welcome?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1191014/vice-president-li-yuanchao-draws-subdued-welcome?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Mar 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Three decades ago, Li Yuanchao seemed destined for a life in the classroom, not the intrigue-filled halls of Zhongnanhai. Li, from Jiangsu, was among the first students to enter the prestigeous Fudan University after the social upheavals of the Cultural Revolution. The university, under the leadership of the famous "first geometer of the Orient", Su Buqing, was developing into the cradle of the mainland's burgeoning mathematics community. Like most students in his classes, Li seemed wholly... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1093343/what-hong-kong-can-expect-li-yuanchao-likely-next-beijing-link-man?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1093343/what-hong-kong-can-expect-li-yuanchao-likely-next-beijing-link-man?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 A mean person and a gentleman view integrity differently, as do a crook and a philanthropist Lawmaker Lam Tai-fai on questions over Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's integrity   I've been able to use this height to my advantage. Plus, the air is fresher up here Basketball ace Yao Ming tells students about the advantages of his 229cm frame   He is not radical. While he is bold in accepting new things, he is also cautious A former colleague talks about Li Yuanchao, expected to be vice-president in... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1093324/who-said-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1093324/who-said-it?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 With the new leadership in Beijing confirmed, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying will next month pay his first visit to the capital since taking office. But who will he meet there? The incumbent state leaders, such as President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, or the new party chief and future president Xi Jinping and incoming premier Li Keqiang? Or will he meet the leaders of both generations? The arrangements will be interesting to see. Meanwhile, any meeting between Leung and Li Yuanchao would... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1090760/fixing-hong-kongs-ailing-relationship-beijing-under-new-guard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1090760/fixing-hong-kongs-ailing-relationship-beijing-under-new-guard?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Retired leaders in China’s Communist Party used a last-minute straw poll to block two pro-reform candidates from joining the policymaking standing committee, including one who had alienated party elders, sources with ties to the leadership said. Two sources said the influential retirees flexed their muscles in landmark informal polls taken before last week’s 18th party congress, where the seven-member standing committee, the apex of China’s power structure, was unveiled. The clout of the elder... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1087355/chinas-backroom-power-brokers-block-reform-candidates?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1087355/chinas-backroom-power-brokers-block-reform-candidates?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Nov 2012 01:52:10 +0000 Li Yuanchao , a trusted ally of Communist Party General Secretary Hu Jintao, is tipped to become vice-president next year and oversee Hong Kong and Macau affairs. However, in what appears to be the result of a compromise between party factions, sources said the 62-year-old head of the party's organisation department would not join its supreme Politburo Standing Committee and would remain a member of the Politburo. Li, long seen as a front runner for promotion to a seven-member Politburo Standing... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1079042/li-yuanchao-tipped-oversee-hong-kong-and-macau-affairs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1079042/li-yuanchao-tipped-oversee-hong-kong-and-macau-affairs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Mitt Romney The Republican saw his US presidential election campaign reignited with a convincing victory over Democratic incumbent Barack Obama in the first debate. Romney has seen his deficit in the polls grow, but was hailed by pundits and pollsters for a commanding performance in the debate on domestic issues. One of the few downsides for Romney was the mocking he received on Twitter for comments about Big Bird, a character from the Sesame Street television shows, as he pledged to withdraw... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1055565/good-week-october-7-2012?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1055565/good-week-october-7-2012?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Oct 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Born in 1950, Li holds a Bachelor's degree in mathematics from Fudan University, a Master's degree in economics from Beijing University, and a doctorate in law from the Central Party School. He rose up the ranks in Jiangsu Province and served as provincial party chief between 2002 and 2007, and has headed the Communist Party's Central Organization Department since 2007. https://www.scmp.com/news/18th-party-congress/article/1053123/li-yuanchao?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/18th-party-congress/article/1053123/li-yuanchao?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Oct 2012 09:09:55 +0000 New details about an earlier internal party poll appear to support widely held expectations that Vice-Premier Wang Qishan and party personnel chief Li Yuanchao will be selected for top leadership posts at the upcoming party congress. Both men, along with leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping and Vice-Premier Li Keqiang , received approval ratings of more than 95 per cent in a poll of top Communist Party leaders in May, according to a party insider. The survey of 370 members and alternate members of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1051888/wang-qishan-li-yuanchao-get-high-approval-ratings-party-poll-insider?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1051888/wang-qishan-li-yuanchao-get-high-approval-ratings-party-poll-insider?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Oct 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Jiangsu party chief appointed head of powerful department A key ally of President Hu Jintao has been appointed to head the Communist Party's powerful Organisation Department, kicking off another round of reshuffles of senior party and government posts after the unveiling of the new leadership lineup early this week. Li Yuanchao , party chief in Jiangsu and a newcomer of the 25-member Politburo, had taken the place of He Guoqiang , who was elevated to the nine-member Politburo Standing... https://www.scmp.com/article/613213/key-hu-ally-take-over-party-nerve-centre?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/613213/key-hu-ally-take-over-party-nerve-centre?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Oct 2007 16:00:00 +0000 For up-and-coming leaders, a Communist Youth League background is surely the biggest political asset, followed by a princeling pedigree, youth and a good education and track record. Rising political star Li Yuanchao , the 57-year-old party boss of affluent Jiangsu province , meets all criteria. According to internal party records, Mr Li was born into an old revolutionary family. His father, Li Gancheng , joined the Youth League in 1929 and the Red Army the following year. Appointed... https://www.scmp.com/article/612609/li-yuanchao-showing-way-green-practices?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/612609/li-yuanchao-showing-way-green-practices?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Oct 2007 16:00:00 +0000 The Cultural Revolution happened because China lacked democracy, Jiangsu party secretary Li Yuanchao said yesterday. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Communist Party's 17th National Congress in Beijing, Mr Li said the Cultural Revolution could have been avoided if China had had democracy. And even if the disaster could not have been avoided, it would not have lasted as long if democracy had been practised in China, he said. Mr Li, 57, was a teenager when the decade-long chaos of... https://www.scmp.com/article/612041/democracy-was-answer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/612041/democracy-was-answer?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Oct 2007 16:00:00 +0000 Hu ally dismisses promotion rumour Li Yuanchao , a close ally of Hu Jintao widely tipped for promotion to a key government post, described rumours that he would join the Politburo Standing Committee as 'nonsense'. Mr Li, a media savvy former vice-director of the State Council Information Office, looked surprised when a Hong Kong journalist asked whether he would join the Standing Committee. 'The speculation ... has no grounds. It is nonsense,' he said. Mr Li, the Jiangsu party... https://www.scmp.com/article/611767/brief?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/611767/brief?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:00:00 +0000 The favourite subject of Li Yuanchao at the NPC conference was not so much the riches of Jiangsu province but rather the need to share wealth. But is Mr Li, Jiangsu party secretary, just an opportunist who mimics what leaders in Beijing have said about building a 'harmonious society'? Not so, it seems. Party insiders said social harmony was Mr Li's pet subject two years ago - long before it became a party slogan. The 55-year-old Jiangsu native is the envy of many mandarins as he is... https://www.scmp.com/article/492451/enviable-achievements-emboss-calling-card-high-flying-cadre?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/492451/enviable-achievements-emboss-calling-card-high-flying-cadre?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 12 Mar 2005 16:00:00 +0000 From mathematics teacher to Jiangsu province party boss, Li Yuanchao says working out solutions remains his daily challenge. Graduating from Shanghai Normal University in 1972, Mr Li, then 22, taught at an evening school to help the many who had been denied the chance to study during the Cultural Revolution. When Deng Xiaoping decided to open China's doors in 1978, Mr Li decided to further his own education, enrolling in the prestigious Fudan University in Shanghai the same year to study... https://www.scmp.com/article/410773/common-touch-takes-jiangsus-party-chief-far?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/410773/common-touch-takes-jiangsus-party-chief-far?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Mar 2003 16:00:00 +0000