What Does 'Historical Resolution' On President Xi Mean?

On 11 November the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) passed a 'historical resolution' that declared the leadership of President Xi Jinping "the key to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation". The publication of the resolution at the conclusion of the Central Committee's annual summit (the plenum) was the first passed by the senior CCP body in 40 years, and lays down another step in the path towards President Xi receiving a previously unheard of third term in office.

• While the resolution does not carry any official weight in terms of extending Xi's tenure, the only other individuals offered this high honour have been Deng Xiaoping and Mao Zedong.
• At the five-yearly CCP Congress in late 2022, there is almost no question that Xi will be confirmed for a third five-year term in office, lasting from 2023-2027. This breaks years of tradition back to Xiang Zemin, who served two five-year terms from 1993 to 2003 and then handed power to Hu Jintao.
• The previous publication of 'Xi Jinping thought' (titled ' Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era') in 2017 was an early indication of Xi's intent to become a more long-standing leader than his two immediate predecessors. The 11 Nov historical resolution acts as another signal that Xi's tenure as president is likely to be a very long-lasting one.