Katsuji Nakazawa is a Tokyo-based senior staff and editorial writer at Nikkei. He spent seven years in China as a correspondent and later as China bureau chief. He was the 2014 recipient of the Vaughn-Ueda International Journalist prize.

Xi Jinping might have just given himself an ace in the hole in his high-stakes game of politics to extend his reign beyond 2027. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by AP and Getty Images)
New target might also be a gambit to help a decoupled China emerge strong