China National People’s Congress: Premier’s news conference scrapped
Chinese officials said Monday that they would not be holding an annual news conference by the country’s premier, Li Qiang.
BEIJING — China delivered a surprise on the eve of its big annual political event, scrapping a longstanding tradition in a move that may do little to ease global concerns about the fate of the world's second-largest economy.
Beijing said Monday that the country’s premier would not be holding a news conference at the close of the National People’s Congress (NPC), eliminating a rare opportunity for journalists from around the world to ask questions of a top Chinese leader at a time of economic uncertainty at home and rising tensions with the United States and others.
Though largely ceremonial, the annual meeting of China’s legislature is the country’s biggest political event of the year. For the past 30 years, it has ended with a wide-ranging news conference by the premier, China’s No. 2 official after President Xi Jinping.
But this year, Premier Li Qiang will not be taking questions, the spokesperson for the legislature said on the eve of the meeting, which runs until March 11.
“Barring any special circumstances, this arrangement will continue for the remainder of this term of the NPC,” the spokesperson, Lou Qinjian, said at a news conference in Beijing. He did not explain further but said there would be more briefings by other government ministers instead on diplomacy, the economy and people’s livelihoods.
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