China after the Sixteenth Party Congress: Prospects and Challenges

Abstract

Generational succession in leadership is always an important event because the differences in formative experiences of a new generation can result in radically different policies and views of the world. The recent leadership transition in China thus deserves scholarly attention. In the aftermath of the Sixteenth Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, this edited volume aims to examine the “prospects and challenges” for China’s new leaders in the areas of elite politics, political reform, democratization, the economy, the military, Sino-U.S. relations, and cross-Strait interactions. This introductory chapter summarizes the key arguments of this collection of articles.