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Main article: Politics of the People's Republic of China
230px Mao Zedong declares the founding of the PRC in 1949
In the technical terminology of political science the PRC was a communist state for much of the 20th century, and is still considered a communist state by many, though not all, political scientists. Attempts to simply characterize the nature of the political structure of China fail. The regime has variously been described as authoritarian, communist, socialist and various combinations of those terms. It has also been described as a communist government.
The government of the PRC is controlled by the Communist Party of China. While there have been some moves toward political liberalization, in that contested elections are now held at the village level and legislatures have shown some assertiveness from time to time, the party retains effective control over governmental appointments. While the state uses authoritarian methods to deal with challenges to its rule, it simultaneously attempts to reduce dissent by improving the economy, allowing expression of personal grievances, and giving rather lenient treatment to persons expressing dissent whom the regime does not believe are organizers.
Censorship of political speech is routine, and the Communist Party ruthlessly suppresses any protests and organizations that it considers a threat to its power, as was the case after the Tiananmen Square protests. However there are limits to the repression that the Party is willing or able to achieve. The media have become increasingly active in publicizing social problems and exposing corruption and inefficiency at lower levels of government. The Party has also been rather unsuccessful at controlling information, and in some cases has had to change policies in response to public outrage. Although organized opposition against the Party is not tolerated, demonstrations over local issues are frequent and increasingly tolerated.The support that the Communist Party of China has among the Chinese population is unclear, as there are no national elections, and private conversations and anecdotal information often reveals conflicting views. Many in China appear appreciative of the role that the government plays in maintaining social stability, which has allowed the economy to grow without interruption. Political concerns in China include the growing gap between rich and poor in the PRC, and the growing discontent with widespread corruption within the leadership.
There are some other parties in PRC. The CPC cooperates with these parties through a special conference, called the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (C.P.P.C.C.) led by the Chinese government, rather than elections. Nevertheless, the effect of the other parties on the government remains minimal. As an advisory body of CPC without real power, the C.P.P.C.C. is quite symbolic.
Main article: Foreign relations of the People's Republic of China
The People's Republic of China maintains diplomatic relations with most countries in the world, but makes acknowledging its claim to Taiwan and severing any official ties with the Republic of China (ROC) government a prerequisite for diplomatic exchanges. It also actively opposes foreign travels by Taiwan independence proponents such as Lee Teng-hui and Chen Shui-bian as well as Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama.
200px Jiang Zemin and Bill Clinton
In 1971, the PRC replaced the Republic of China as the sole representative for "China" in the United Nations and as one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. (See China and the United Nations)
It was for a time a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, and now remains an observer. Much of the current foreign policy is based on the concept of China's peaceful rise.
Sino-American relations have been strained several times in the past few decades. Points of contention include the 2001 reconnaissance plane crash, in which China detained the plane's 24 crewmembers and confiscated sensitive information from the craft, and the Cox report's revelation of PRC espionage compromising U.S. nuclear secrets dating back several decades.See also: Political status of Taiwan
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