Yuan Jiajun

Yuan Jiajun (; born 27 September 1962) is a Chinese politician and aerospace engineer. He is the Party Secretary of Chongqing and a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Before entering politics, Yuan was best known for his role as chief designer of the Shenzhou spacecraft, which carries Chinese taikonauts into space. He also served as the governor of Zhejiang from 2017 to 2020 and the Party Secretary of Zhejiang from 2020 to 2022.

Early life and education Yuan was born in Tonghua, Jilin in September 1962. From 1980 to 1984, Yuan studied at Beijing Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, majoring in aircraft design and applied mechanics.

Aerospace career Yuan ascended the ranks and became the office's deputy director in August 1994. Less than a year in the position, he was promoted to assistant director of the Fifth Institute. Then, he gained a doctorate from his alma mater, now renamed Beihang University. Yuan became vice-president of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation in November 2007, and became involved in the Lunar Mission and the joint Chinese-Russian mission to explore Mars. Yuan has received numerous awards for his work in the Chinese Space Program.

Political career He became involved in politics in 2012, joining the party standing committee in Ningxia, and becoming vice chairman of Ningxia in 2013, and overseeing the operations of the Ningdong Energy and Chemical Operations Industry Base . He also became the contact person for the provincial People's Liberation Army and People's Armed Police. In April 2017, Yuan was appointed as acting governor of Zhejiang; he was confirmed on July 7. In 2018, he headed an inquiry committee over public protests due to the results of English language test in Gaokao; the committee concluded in December that the Zhejiang Education Department made a "wrong policy decision", distorting many students' scores.

On 31 August 2020, Yuan was appointed as the CCP Secretary of Zhejiang. In December 2020, Yuan chaired a meeting of the Zhejiang Provincial CCP Standing Committee which discussed directives by the central CCP leadership to break up monopolies and control expansion of capital while "promoting healthy and regulated development of the platform economy". In April 2021, Yuan chaired another meeting of the Standing Committee, which pledged to "supervise and guide" the platform economy, including Alibaba Group. It also pledged to "promote the health and regulated development" of the platform economy.

Chongqing After the 20th Party Congress in October 2022, Yuan became a member of the CCP Politburo. On 8 December 2022, Yuan was appointed as the CCP Secretary of Chongqing, succeeding Chen Min'er. Weeks later, he resigned as chairman of the Zhejiang People's Congress.

He met with Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu in May 2023, where both cities pledged to increase cooperation in several areas. In August 2023, Yuan met with members of US General Joseph Stilwell's family for the 140th anniversary of his birth, saying he hoped to take the visit as an opportunity to "better promote people-to-people exchanges between China and the United States and contribute to the development of China-US relations".