BEIJING (AP) — China's annual legislative session opens Monday amid a challenging transition to a new generation of leaders and concerns about the economy.
The National People's Congress also starts as China faces new pressures at home and abroad, but its leadership may be ill-equipped to respond because of a lengthy transition period.
President Hu Jintao and senior Communist Party leaders begin stepping aside this fall after a decade in power to make way for new leaders. That means behind-the-scenes bargaining is going on.
Peking University political scientist Yang Zhaohui said: "We are currently in a silent period, everything is happening behind the scenes."
Economic worries include the European crisis and a fragile U.S. recovery.
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