Deng joins China's elders, but retains power role
| Peking
Chinese Communist Party strongman Deng Xiaoping was confirmed Monday as chairman of a newly formed Council of Elders, set up to provide a face-saving way for aging revolutionary leaders to retire and make way for younger men.
But Mr. Deng clearly is not yet ready to retire himself. He remains officially No. 3 in the hierarchy - after his proteges Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang. He retains three key chairmanships, the two latter ones being the Veterans Central Advisory Commission and the Central Military Commission.