US-sanctioned Li Shangfu appointed China Defense Minister
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The National People’s Congress (NPC, China’s highest organ of state power) approved on Sunday the appointment of General Li Shangfu as China’s defense minister. informs Reuters.
According to the agency, the general’s candidacy was approved by an overwhelming majority. Chen Yixin and Wang Xiaohong, respectively, remained ministers of state security and public security, while Qin Gang and He Rong became ministers of foreign affairs and justice, Reuters writes.
Li Shangfu has been under US sanctions since 2018 for buying combat aircraft and equipment from Rosoboronexport. As Reuters wrote earlier, China has acquired Su-35 fighters and S-400 air defense systems from Russia.
The National People’s Congress began its work on March 5, and the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Council (CPPCC; advisory body) started the day before. The main attention is focused on the NPC session, which will approve the leadership of the country’s executive branch for five years, Vedomosti wrote.
Previously, the NPC deputies unanimously voted for Xi Jinping’s candidacy for the presidency of the People’s Republic of China. This is the first leader in Chinese history to be re-elected for a third five-year term. He received 2,952 votes, wrote CNN. At the same time, Xi Jinping was also elected to the post of chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the PRC. Earlier, in the fall of 2022, he was also re-elected as the head of the Communist Party for the third time.
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