Since the 2-week long Beidaihe meetings, Chinese President Xi Jinping has held at least 4 high-level Party meetings. He first convened a meeting on August 18 of China's top generals and demanded that the military show absolute loyalty to the party. He also vowed to deepen the anti-corruption campaign to clean up the world’s largest fighting force. On August 20, Xi Jinping chaired a five-yearly propaganda and ideological work conference. Speaking to top officials, media chiefs and editors, the president called on them to close ranks around the “party core” and unify minds. He followed this with another key meeting on August 24, on law and order asking officials to deepen reforms and safeguard the constitution. That call came after major constitutional revisions were made in March, including the controversial move to scrap presidential term limits. On August 27, Xi Jinping chaired a meeting on his signature “Belt and Road Initiative” at which he defended the trade and infrastructure strategy against criticism from Western countries. Meanwhile, a commentary in the People’s Daily on August 29 said Xi “profoundly analysed the domestic and international situation” and had taken the right steps to safeguard the country’s security during a “critical period in China’s national rejuvenation”. Zhang Baohui, a political science professor from Lingnan University in Hong Kong, also said there had been no major changes. “People who were expecting policy adjustments were proven to be wrong,” Zhang said. “Xi cannot afford to admit mistakes in his policies – that would further embolden his critics.”
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