Profile: Jiang Zemin
Born: July 10, 1926
Birthplace: Yangzhou, Jiangsu province
Education: Studied electrical engineering at Jiaotong University, Shanghai. Graduated in 1947.
Career highlights: Joined the Communist Party in 1947 and was chief of the electric machinery section for the First Ministry of Machine Building in Shanghai. In 1955, went to Moscow for training and returned to work in China’s state-run No. 1 Automobile Works in Changchun, Jilin province. In 1962, transferred back to the First Ministry of Machine Building. In 1971, represented the ministry in Romania for two years. In 1979, was appointed vice minister and secretary-general of the State Council’s Import and Export Control Commission. In 1982, was appointed vice minister and then minister of electronics. From 1985 to 1988, was mayor of Shanghai. In 1989, became general secretary of the party. Named president in 1993.
Personal: Married to Wang Yeping, three sons. Speaks Russian, Romanian and English.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
