(TibetanReview.net, May11’22) – Xi Jinping may be China’s most powerful man since Mao Zedong, having managed to set himself up for an unprecedented third term in office; but is his health up to the mark to continue to lead his country?
Xi is suffering from “cerebral aneurysm” and had to be hospitalized at the end of 2021, reported the news agency ANI May 10, citing media reports.
He was stated to have preferred to be treated with traditional Chinese medicines rather than going for surgery, which softens the blood vessels and shrinks aneurysm.
Cerebral aneurysm is a ballooning arising from a weakened area in the wall of a blood vessel in the brain. If the brain aneurysm expands and the blood vessel wall becomes too thin, the aneurysm will rupture and bleed into the space around the brain.
Speculations about Xi’s health had arisen in 2019 as well, the report noted. He had avoided meeting foreign leaders since the outbreak of Covid-19 till the Beijing Winter Olympics in February this year.
And before that, in Mar 2019, during a visit to Italy, his gait was observed to be unusual with a noticeable limp and later also in France during the same tour, he was seen taking support while trying to sit down, the report noted.
Xi has set himself up to be confirmed for an unprecedented third term in office during the 20th five-yearly Party Congress to be held later this year.