Hu Jintao Outlook on Development, which aimed to build a "Harmonious Socialist Society" that was prosperous and free of social conflict. Under his leadership, the authorities also cracked down on social disturbances, ethnic minority protests, and dissident figures. In foreign policy, Hu advocated for "China's peaceful development", pursuing soft power in international relations and a corporate approach to diplomacy. Throughout Hu's tenure, China's influence in Africa, Latin America, and other developing regions increased. Hu possessed a low-key and reserved leadership style. His tenure was characterized by collective leadership and consensus-based rule. These traits made Hu a rather enigmatic figure in the public
Li Ruihuan behind only Hu Jintao. Thus, many Li supporters assumed that he and Vice President Hu would have been the only two PSC incumbents to have their five-year terms renewed at the 16th congress. Thus, he would have been in place likely to assume the post of chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC), a post held by Li Peng prior to the party congress. Some were even expecting that Li Ruihuan would have formed a triumvirate together in the post-16th congress PSC with Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao. Many expected that such a triumvirate would have relegated Jiang's "Shanghai clique,"