China marks Communist Party's 105th anniversary with Xi set to deliver 'important speech'

China has launched a series of large-scale events ahead of the Communist Party's 105th founding anniversary on Wednesday. President Xi Jinping is set to deliver an "important speech" at a commemorative ceremony, and the country's top leadership gathered Sunday evening for a gala concert highlighting the party's history and governing legitimacy.

According to China's state-run Xinhua News Agency, the concert — titled "People First" (Renmin Zhishang), meaning the people are the top priority — was held Sunday evening at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi was joined by Premier Li Qiang, National People's Congress Standing Committee Chairman Zhao Leji, Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Chairman Wang Huning, Communist Party Central Secretariat Secretary Cai Qi and State Council Executive Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, along with an audience of about 3,000.

The performance opened with a children's choir singing "A Song Dedicated to the Party" and moved through a program of revolutionary-era classics — including "Ode to the Red Flag," "Ode to the Yellow River" and "The Sky Over the Liberated Areas" — before turning to pieces representing socialist construction, reform and opening-up, and the "new era."

The concert closed with all attendees joining in a chorus of "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China," a song evoking the party's revolutionary spirit.

The concert's theme, "People First," is one of the governing slogans Xi has consistently championed since taking power. Observers note it also aligns with the current policy direction of the Chinese government, which has made stimulating consumption, stabilizing livelihoods and reviving the economy its top priorities.

Xinhua described the atmosphere at the venue, saying the country had "weathered hardships together and marched forward hand in hand over 105 years," and that the concert "was filled from start to finish with grand emotion and colorful performances."

China will hold the 105th founding anniversary ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing at 10 a.m. Wednesday local time. At the event, recipients of the "July 1 Medal" — the Communist Party's highest honor — will be decorated, and outstanding party members, party workers and grassroots party organizations from across the country will be recognized.

Xi is expected to deliver an "important speech" at the ceremony, Xinhua said.

China has held various commemorative events around July 1, the party's founding anniversary, each year. The centennial in 2021 was marked with a large-scale celebration at Tiananmen Square, where the "July 1 Medal" was awarded for the first time.

This year's commemorations come as US-China strategic competition has entered a new phase since the start of the second Donald Trump administration, and as China grapples with structural challenges including slowing economic growth, a prolonged real estate slump and weak domestic demand. Against that backdrop, attention is focused on what messages Xi will deliver in his speech on domestic and foreign policy — including economic recovery, technological self-reliance, relations with Washington, and diplomatic and security strategy.