Modernity with Chinese features

Xi's plan is more comprehensive than what observers think. The key to its success will be the balance between modernity and CCP-led socialism

At the start of the 19th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) this month, President Xi Jinping unveiled his “two-stage development plan” to turn China into a “modern socialist state” by 2035. Since then, commentators have furiously debated the theme of “China rising” and Mr Xi’s concentration of power in his own hands. They are missing the point.

In fact, Mr Xi’s plan is far more comprehensive and forward-looking than most observers seem to think. Much like his predecessors Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, Mr Xi has established a strategy for transforming China into a “prosperous, strong, democratic,