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steadily.
The two previous Vice Premiers, Wan Li and Yao Yilin,
remain but there are two additions, Li Peng, until now First
Vice Minister of Water Resources and Electric Power responsible
for the Guangdong nuclear project, and Tian Jiyun, until now a
Deputy Secretary General of the State Council. The increase
in the number of Vice Premiers appears to have been dictated
by the burden of work imposed on Wan and Yao. Both Li and Tian
are young by Chinese standards, 55 and 54 respectively. They
have jumped a number of rungs from their previous posts. Li
has struck us as very competent ministerial material, but we
did not think him an obvious choice for a Vice Premier. He
had links with Zhou Enlai and is also reputed to be close to
Yao Yilin. Tian is an economist who worked under Zhao Ziyang
in Sichuan and about whom we know next to nothing.
34. Four of the State Councillors have departed: Yu Qiuli to
concentrate full time on his work as Director of the Political
Department of the People's Liberation Army; Huang Hua, the
former Foreign Minister, and Geng Biao, a former Vice Premier,
to the somewhat empty posts of NPC Vice Chairman and NPC
Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman respectively; and Bo Yibo
to honourable retirement. There are three new State Councillors:
Foreign Affairs Minister Wu Xueqian, Finance Minister Wang
Binggian, and the new Minister in charge of the State Planning
Commission, Song Ping, who is a protege of Chen Yun, having
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