Xi Jinping begins third term as the President of China

Xi Jinping on Friday has secured third term as president of the People’s Republic of China. The solo candidate XI was voted unanimously by the members of the National People’s Congress (NPC).

According to the AP news, Xi’s new term and the appointment of loyalists to top posts accentuates his near-total monopoly on Chinese political power and eliminates any potential opposition to his hyper-nationalistic agenda of building China into the top political, military and economic rival to the U.S. and the chief authoritarian challenge to the Washington-led democratic world order.

Reviving the economy, Taiwan and rivalry with the US are among the challenges in the next five years for Xi as the President during third term, writes the SCMP.