(B. 1904)
Paramount leader of the People's Republic of China since the coup that ousted Mao Zedong in 1965, Deng Xiaoping is a capable administrator and cunning strategist. His leadership has seen China's industrial and technological progress accelerate far more rapidly than ever before, while cooperation with the Soviet Union strengthened in the face of German-American dominance. The Xiaoping administration has primarily been focused on public education, NEP-like market reforms, professionalisation of the PLA, implementing technocracy while rooting out old ideologues, and reviving the Chinese national spirit. Some in the US Congress even warn of a "Chinese Century", should the west not catch up.