A former academic, Wang was a professor of international politics and dean of the law school at Fudan University. During this time, he gained attention due to his belief in "neoconservatism", which held that a strong leadership was needed for China's stability and political reforms. He started to work for the CCP leadership in 1995 as a director of a research team at the CCP's Central Policy Research Office (CPRO). He became the CPRO's deputy director in 1998, and was promoted to the party's Central Committee and director of the office in 2002, remaining the latter until 2020, the longest tenure in the office. He assisted CCP general secretary Jiang Zemin, and was believed to be instrumental in developing Jiang's signature political theory, the Three Represents. He later became a close confidant of CCP general secretary Hu Jintao, believed to be key to developing his primary theory, Scientific Outlook on Development, and became a secretary of the CCP secretariat in 2007.
Wang became a member of the CCP Politburo in 2012, and is believed to have developed close relations with CCP general secretary Xi Jinping, becoming one of his closer advisors. In 2017, he was promoted to the 5th-ranked member of the Politburo Standing Committee and the first-ranking secretary of the CCP Secretariat. He has also chaired leading commissions on ideology and reforms and is believed to have been instrumental in developing key concepts under Xi, including Xi Jinping Thought, Chinese-style modernization, the Chinese Dream, and the Belt and Road Initiative. In 2022, he was succeeded by Cai Qi as the first secretary, and became the 4th-ranking member of the PSC. He became the CPPCC chairman in March 2023, succeeding Wang Yang. He also became the deputy leader of the Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, becoming responsible for political relations with Taiwan.
Widely regarded as the "Gray Eminence" of the CCP, Wang is believed to be its chief ideologue as well as principal architect behind the official political ideologies of three CCP general secretaries since the 1990s. He has held significant influence over policy and decision-making of all three paramount leaders, an exceptionally rare feat in Chinese politics. Wang believes that a strong, centralized state is needed in China to resist foreign influence, an idea that has been influential under Xi Jinping.
Early life
Wang Was born on 6 October 1955 in Nanshi, Shanghai.[2] He traces his heritage to Ye County, Shandong province, though he never lived in Shandong. Wang's name, "Huning (沪宁)", literally means "the peace (宁) of Shanghai (沪)", a typical name given by his Red Army parents, who fought in the Shanghai Campaign of the Chinese Civil War and remained in the city thereafter. As a military official, Wang Huning's father was implicated during the anti–Peng Dehuai campaign launched by Mao Zedong and suffered persecution during the Cultural Revolution. His mother was hospitalized several times due to illness after 1965, requiring Wang and his two older brothers had to look after her.[3] During his youth, Wang went to the Shanghai Yongqiang Middle School, where he obtained books that were forbidden during that era from his teachers. After the school opened a mechanic class, Wang participated in it as an apprentice worker. He graduated from this junior high school in 1972.[4]
After his graduation in February 1977,[note 3] he became a cadre at the Shanghai Publishing Bureau. In 1978, he participated in the Graduate Entrance Examination and was admitted as a postgraduate student in the Department of International Politics of Fudan University. His mentor was Chen Qiren, who later recalled Wang was late during the interview, but he gave Wang a pass due to his excellence in the primary exam.[6] Wang's Master dissertation was "From Bodin to Maritain: A review on the development of the Western sovereignty theory". The thesis was highly approved by the defense committee. He received a Master of Laws degree[note 4] in 1981 and stayed in Fudan as an instructor at the Political Science Teaching and Research Department.[7] During this time, he was highly appreciated by Wang Bangzuo, then director of the Department.[8] They were usually referred to as "the two Wang" by their counterparts.[9]
Academic career
In April 1984, Wang joined the Party. In 1985 at age 29, without first needing to serve as lecturer, Wang was promoted to associate professor in international politics, making him China's youngest associate professor at the time.[7] During this time he published widely in academic journals, newspapers and magazines, which were read by the intellectual elite.[4] By the end of 1985, Wang had published nearly 80 articles and compiled 700,000 words of materials. He was also selected as a special policy researcher by Organization Department of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and was the main contributor to the book "Introduction to Political Science", a key social sciences project during the sixth five-year plan.[10]
In 1988, Wang was a visiting scholar in the United States for six months, spending the first three months at the University of Iowa, three weeks at the University of California, Berkeley, and visiting many other universities. During his time in the United States, Wang visited over 30 cities and close to 20 universities,[11] and later wrote about his experiences in his book America Against America.[12] After returning to China, Wang served as director of Fudan University's Department of International Politics from 1989 to 1994, and as dean of the law school in 1994–95.[2]
Wang was a well-known young scholar in academic circles since the 1980s. He wrote columns and essays for numerous party-sanctioned publications and was featured on the cover of current affairs magazines such as Banyuetan (半月谈), attracting the attention of Shanghai's top political leaders,[4] and he was known by Jiang Zemin, then CCP secretary of Shanghai.[13] His achievements led to him participating in the drafting of theoretical documents for the CCP since the 13th CCP National Congress. In 1993, Wang led the Fudan student debate team to participate in a Chinese-language international college debate competition in Singapore. The team won the championship between 1988 and 1993, greatly enhancing Wang's reputation.[4]
On 12 February 1993, Wang established the Fudan University Development Research Institute. During this time, Wang participated in "bimontly seminars" organized first by Shanghai mayor Jiang Zemin. The Development Research Institute submitted various reports, including on the 1989 revolutions in the Eastern Bloc and the political status of Taiwan. Wang was one of the two chief planners, of the China Development Report published by the Development Research Institute at the end of 1993; he was also the chief writer of its political section.[10] Wang's work in the 1990s expressed the position that China should reclaim a sense of Chinese cultural and intellectual autonomy.[14]: 125 This drew increased attention from political leaders in the central government.[14]: 125–126
Political career
In the summer of 1994, he participated in the drafting of the documents for the fourth plenary session of the 14th Central Committee.[15] From 1995, Wang was referred to work for the party leadership in Beijing on recommendation from top Shanghai politicians Zeng Qinghong and Wu Bangguo, both of whom maintained close relationships with now-party General Secretary Jiang Zemin.[16] He was summoned by Jiang to head the political research team at the Central Policy Research Office (CPRO),[13] and was promoted in April 1998 to deputy director of the CPRO, ultimately being promoted to director in 2002.[13][17] He was regarded as one of the major sources of brainpower Jiang Zemin drew from[18][19] and accompanied Jiang on foreign visits since 1998 as a special assistant.[16] He was also part of a team that formulated Jiang's "Three Represents" that was written into the CCP constitution in 2002.[20]
In 2002, he became a member of the CCP's Central Committee.[16] In November 2007, Wang was admitted to the Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party. He began accompanying General Secretary Hu Jintao on foreign trips[19] and was considered one of Hu's three most influential advisors, along with Ling Jihua and Chen Shiju.[16] During this time, he also started working together with Xi Jinping; Wang was a member of a committee overseeing "party building", which Xi started chairing in 2007.[21] Wang led the team that wrote Hu's final report at the 18th CCP National Congress.[13] According to Radio Free Asia, Wang proposed twice to the central government about stepping down as the CPRO Director after becoming a secretary of the Secretariat, but continued in the role as the CCP Organization Department could not find anyone to succeed him.[22]
He was promoted to the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party in November 2012 after the Congress, becoming the first director of the CPRO to hold a seat on the elite ruling council. He also stepped down from the CCP Secretariat.[16] Following the ascension of Xi Jinping to the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party in November 2012, Wang nurtured a close relationship with Xi, again emerging as one of the central members of Xi's entourage on international trips and seen to be one of Xi's closest advisors.[23][24] On 22 January 2014, Wang was appointed as the director of the Office of the Central Comprehensively Deepening Reforms Commission (CCDR), a new CCP body.[25]
First-ranked Secretary of the Secretariat (2017–2022)
Wang was chosen to be the 5th-ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee, China's top decision-making body, on 25 October 2017, becoming one of the few members of the body without prior ministerial or provincial experience.[26] He returned to the Secretariat to become its first-ranking secretary.[27] He was also appointed as a deputy leader of the CCDR.[25] Wang has frequently accompanied Xi in his trips, suggesting involvement in China's diplomacy.[28][29] Along with other leading cadre, Wang presided over the development of Xuexi Qiangguo, an app designed to teach Xi Jinping Thought.[30]: 29 After the CCP launched the "not forgetting the original intent and remembering the mission" (不忘初心、牢记使命) educational campaign in May 2019, Wang was appointed as the head of the Central Leading Group.[31]
In January 2020, Wang was appointed as deputy leader of the Central Leading Group for Responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic, with premier Li Keqiang as the leader.[32] He also accompanied Xi to visiting Wuhan in March.[33] He was succeeded by Jiang Jinquan as the director of CPRO in 2020.[34] In 2020, he was one of the drafters of the outline of the fourteenth five-year plan.[35] He played a key role in drafting the "third historical resolution" in November 2021, which further consolidated Xi's power.[28]Reuters reported on 3 March 2023, citing sources, that Wang held a meeting in late October with top medical experts, senior officials and people from the propaganda apparatus, asking them how many deaths an abandonment of zero-COVID controls would cause in a worst-case scenario and requesting them to devise roadmaps on reopening policies in different paces.[36]
Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (2023–)
Wang was the secretary-general of the 20th CCP National Congress, held in October 2022.[37] He was also one of the deputy directors of the drafting team helping draft Xi's speech for the National Congress.[35] Following the first plenary session of the 20th CCP Central Committee, Wang was reappointed to the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party as its 4th ranking member, and was succeeded by Cai Qi as the first secretary of the Secretariat.[38]
In May 2023, Wang visited Xinjiang, including major cities such as Ürümqi and Kashgar as well as rural communities, schools, mosques and businesses. In Ürümqi, he visited the a museum, the Xinjiang Islamic Institute, the Xinjiang University and some companies, while in Kashgar, he visited the Id Kah Mosque and the Mangan village. During the visit, he called for unity among ethnic groups and called on to "plant the seeds of patriotism into everyone, especially the teenagers".[44] During a work conference on Xinjiang in September 2023, Wang called for efforts to develop industrial, education and cultural sectors of Xinjiang, and also stressed the importance of "pairing assistance" programs. He also called for "fostering a strong sense of community of the Chinese nation".[45]
In December 2023, Wang spoke at the 11th National Chinese Christian Congress, where he called on the Three-Self Patriotic Movement and the China Christian Council to "adhere to the direction of Sinicization of Christianity" and "interpret the doctrines that conform to the development and progress requirements of contemporary China, the core values of socialism and the excellent traditional Chinese culture".[46] In 2024, he was a deputy head to the Xi-led drafting committee that wrote the resolutions of the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee in July 2024.[35] At a plenary meeting of the CPPCC in July 2024, Wang called for boosting the dual circulation strategy.[47] In December 2024, he visited the China Tibetology Research Center in Beijing.[48]
Taiwan
In January 2023, Wang became the deputy leader of the Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, placing him in charge of political relations with Taiwan.[49] He is tasked with laying the groundwork for unification with Taiwan, coming up with a theory that replaces "one country, two systems" to serve as a metric to measure progress toward China's unification goals, and decide if a military operation is necessary.[50] On 10 February, he met with Andrew Hsia, vice chairman of the Kuomintang.[51] During the visit, Wang said that "Taiwan independence is incompatible with peace and runs counter to the well-being of Taiwan compatriots".[51] Wang also met with Liu Chao-shiuan, president of the Council of the Summit for Entrepreneurs Across the Taiwan Strait, in April, and Wu Cherng-dean, chairman of the New Party, in June.[52] In the same month, at the Straits Forum Wang unveiled a plan to transform Fujian province into a showcase zone for "Taiwan’s economic integration into China".[53]
On 11 September, he was chosen as the president of the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification, a body designed to advance unification with Taiwan; the CPPCC chairman also generally serves as the president of the council.[54] In February 2024, Wang spoke at the Taiwan Work Conference, where he said China "must resolutely fight ‘Taiwan independence’ separatism" and "further grasp the strategic initiative to achieve the complete unification of the motherland".[55] On 10 April, he was one of the officials that met former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou during his meeting with Xi.[49] On 27 April, he met with a Kuomintang delegation led by Fu Kun-chi, the Majority Leader in the Legislative Yuan, in Beijing.[56] He attended the Straits Forum in June 2024, where he said the "historic trend of China’s renaissance and reunification is unstoppable".[57] In August, he sent a congratulatory to the Overseas Chinese World Conference for Promoting Peaceful Reunification of China held in Hong Kong, praising the efforts of Chinese in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and overseas in advocating against Taiwanese independence.[58]
During his tenure as a professor in the 1980s, Wang initially gained attention for his advocacy of neoauthoritarianism, the view that a centralized government is necessary to maintain economic growth and stability, which could later slowly do political reforms from within.[27][61] In a paper published in 1986, he wrote that it is "very important to comply with the constitution" lest a new Cultural Revolution happen.[62] His political views changed after his visit to the U.S., after which he advocated for a centralized one-party state that was culturally unified and self-confident to resist the influence of liberal ideas.[63] In a 1995 interview, he said that "[i]n a place without central authority, or a place where central authority has become weakened, the country would be mired in a state of division and chaos," and that "[a] strong central authority is the fundamental guarantee for achieving rapid and stable development at a relatively low cost during the process of modernization."[21]
Culture
In his 1988 essay "The Structure of China's Changing Political Culture", Wang said that the CCP must reconsider how a nation's "software", meaning culture, values, and attitudes, shaped its "hardware", meaning economics, systems, and institutions. Some sources have attributed this type of thought to be "a daring break from the materialism of Orthodox Marxism."[63] Wang said that China was under a great transformation, but the new model under the socialism with Chinese characteristics was leaving China with no core values, which "could serve only to dissolve societal and political cohesion". Wang also said that the introduction of Marxism to China was not completely positive, and that while the CCP criticized China's historical values since 1949, it has not paid enough attention to creating and shaping its own core values. He recommended that China combine its historical and modern values (including foreign Marxist values).[63] Wang has also written China's first academic paper on "soft power", and has been thought to be the driving force in China's investments in promoting its culture overseas.[13]
In 1991, after his visit to the U.S., Wang wrote the book America Against America.[12] The book talked about the increasing challenges he saw in the U.S., such as inequality, economic conflicts, decaying of social values and commodification.[63] He also praised the strengths of the U.S., such as its modernity[61] and was described by The Economist as "seeing the weaknesses in America's system, but not exaggerating them".[34] In Wang's own words:
My intention with this title is to show that America contains contradictions that cannot be dismissed with a single sentence. In the old days, people had a dogmatic view of American society as merely the “exploitation of surplus value,” a “dictatorship of the bourgeoisie,” and nothing more. Now there is another extreme, some people imagine the United States as a paradise, rich and without flaw. In fact American society doesn’t match either of these descriptions, and often finds itself in fundamental contradiction with them. There are strengths and weaknesses, and wherever strength can be found, weakness can also be found. America is a contradiction, it contains multitudes. This is what I mean by “America Against America.”[64]
Personal life
Wang has been described by former colleagues as an insomniac and workaholic, introverted, discreet and "almost obsessively low-profile."[20] After entering into politics in the 1990s, he cut off most contact with his academic colleagues.[63] Having studied French as an undergraduate, Wang is a fluent French speaker.[7] He is also an avid reader of Wuxia novels.[16] In his memoir Political Life, Wang said his goal in life was to keep writing books and teaching students.[40]
Having worked closely with three consecutive paramount leaders, Wang demonstrated a rare and remarkable ability to retain influence under leaders belonging to various Communist Party factions.[63] Additionally, he has been described as "China's Kissinger" by The Hankyoreh,[65] and is called guóshī (Chinese: 国师) by Chinese netizens, a title historically given to top religious leaders in Imperial China, particularly the Yuan Dynasty.[61]
Wang's books include The Logic of Politics—The Principles of Marxist Political Science, General Introduction to New Politics, Analysis of Modern Western Politics, Analysis of Comparative Politics and Debate Contest in Lion City, all in Chinese. Others include (all in Chinese):
——— (1987). National Sovereignty.
——— (1987). Analysis of Comparative Politics.
——— (1988). Analysis of Contemporary Western Politics.
——— (1988). Introduction to Public Administration.
——— (1989). Analysis of Administrative Ecology.
——— (1989). Collection of Wang Huning.
——— (1990). Anti-Corruption: Experiment in China.
——— (1990). Corruption and Anti-Corruption: Study of Contemporary Oversees Corruption Problem.
——— (1991). Culture of Contemporary Chinese Village Family.
^There are arguments on when Wang was admitted to the training class. Normally it took three years to graduate for undergraduate-level education in China during the Cultural Revolution. Official records by East China Normal University suggest that Wang entered the School in 1977, which is widely believed to be true. According to Wang himself, he remained in the countryside for four and a half years in his book Culture of Contemporary Chinese Village Family.
^The training school did not offer a degree for graduates. On 13 July 1982, after countless petitions for certificates, the Shanghai Higher Education Bureau issued notice that all training school graduates who participated and passed an exam which consisted of political theory, Chinese literature and foreign languages would be granted a junior college (大专) degree.[5]
^In the Chinese academic system, law is a much broader sector includes law (legal studies), political science, international relations and Marxist theory.
References
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^"特稿 教授王沪宁" [Special Article: Professor Wang Huning]. Cankao Network (in Simplified Chinese). 15 June 2016. Archived from the original on 21 July 2023. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
^ abcTang, Tao (4 July 2018). "华东师范大学1972-1980年更名始末" [The whole story of the name change of East China Normal University from 1972 to 1980]. East China Normal University (in Simplified Chinese). Archived from the original on 2 November 2023. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
^Han, Xiaorong (13 January 2014). "导师:王沪宁考研复试迟到 初试出众获照顾" [Tutor: Wang Huning was late for the re-examination of the postgraduate entrance examination, but he excelled in the initial examination and was taken care of]. Oriental Morning Post. Archived from the original on 14 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
^Xia, Ming (2 November 2017). "夏明：我和王滬寧的十年交往" [Xia Ming: My ten-year relationship with Wang Huning]. Initium Media. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
^"有此一说："一国两制"首创于王沪宁的内部文稿（高新）" [There is a saying: "One country, two systems" was first created in Wang Huning's internal manuscript]. Radio Free Asia. 25 August 2017. Archived from the original on 7 November 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
^ ab"教授王沪宁" [Professor Wang Huning]. fx361.com. 15 June 2016. Archived from the original on 21 July 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
^Xiao, Hong (1 July 2014). "王沪宁：从学者走入决策层" [Wang Huning: From Scholar to the Decision-Making Level]. Golden Autumn Magazine (金秋杂志). Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
^"话中南海：王沪宁二十五年前选择"下海"是因为"政治常有而政治学不常有"？" [Zhongnanhai Night Talk: Wang Huning chose to “go into business” 25 years ago because “politics is common but political science is not”?]. Radio Free Asia. 28 September 2020. Archived from the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
^ abcdefXiao, Hong (1 July 2014). "王沪宁：从学者走入决策层" [Wang Huning: From scholar to decision-maker]. "Golden Autumn" Magazine. Archived from the original on 25 October 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2021.
^"夜话中南海：中共理论幕僚最高官至正部长级 王沪宁是唯一例外" [Zhongnanhai Night Talk: Wang Huning, the highest-ranking official of the CCP’s theoretical staff and a ministerial level official, is the sole exception]. Radio Free Asia. 6 November 2020. Archived from the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
^"习近平：守初心担使命找差距抓落实确保主题教育取得扎扎实实的成效" [Xi Jinping: Keep the original aspiration, shoulder the mission, find the gaps and implement them to ensure that the theme education achieves solid results]. Xinhua News Agency. 31 May 2024. Archived from the original on 4 April 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
^"李克强主持召开中央应对新型冠状病毒感染肺炎疫情工作领导小组会议" [Li Keqiang presides over the meeting of the Central Leading Group for Responding to the Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Epidemic]. Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 26 January 2020. Archived from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
^"习近平在湖北省考察新冠肺炎疫情防控工作" [Xi Jinping inspects the prevention and control work of the new crown pneumonia epidemic in Hubei Province]. Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 10 March 2020. Archived from the original on 17 February 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
^"中国人民政治协商会议第十四届全国委员会委员名单" [List of Members of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference]. Xinhua News Agency. 17 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
^"王沪宁地位角色愈趋重要" [Wang Huning's status and role are becoming increasingly important]. Radio France Internationale. 20 July 2023. Archived from the original on 21 July 2023. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
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