The World - News from Sept. 18, 1989

China’s senior leader Deng Xiaoping has designated Communist Party General Secretary Jiang Zemin to be his successor as China’s leader, the New York Times reported in today’s editions. Deng’s choice, which was revealed to top leaders at a private meeting in June, was viewed as a setback for hard-line Premier Li Peng, the newspaper said. Jiang, 63, is strongly associated with the policy of economic openness to the West. Deng made it clear to the other leaders that Jiang’s commitment to that policy and to continued economic restructuring was a major factor in his being chosen, the paper said.