The Politics of Purges: How Hu Yaobang’s Story Explains China’s Power Struggles

September 2025

Past Event

The Politics of Purges: How Hu Yaobang’s Story Explains China’s Power Struggles

Past Event

Hudson Institute

September 30, 2025

September 2025

Past Event

Speakers:

Robert Suettinger

Former National Intelligence Officer for East Asia, National Intelligence Council

Piero Tozzi

Deputy Staff Director, Congressional-Executive Commission on China

Moderator:

Listen to Event Audio

The Chinese Communist Party is an opaque authoritarian regime that many observers mistake as monolithic. But behind the image of strongman leadership lie precarious factions, power struggles, and a dangerous tension between reform and stability. Few figures in modern Chinese history embody these contradictions more vividly than Hu Yaobang, a former party official who was forced to resign due to his alleged tolerance of pro-liberalization protests.

Join Senior Fellow Michael Sobolik for a conversation with Robert Suettinger and Piero Tozzi about Suettinger’s book The Conscience of the Party, which explores how Hu’s story illuminates the broader patterns of CCP factional struggle. They will discuss what Hu’s experiences and legacy can teach policymakers about contemporary CCP power struggles, purges, and the ongoing tension between reformist impulses and the pursuit of stability under Xi Jinping.

16 - 19

April 2026

In-Person Event | Hudson Institute

Citizen and State: Tocqueville, Liberty, and Public Life | Hudson Institute Political Studies Policy Certificate Program

Featured Speakers:

Rachel Mackey

Robert Woodson

16 - 19

April 2026

In-Person Event | Hudson Institute

Citizen and State: Tocqueville, Liberty, and Public Life | Hudson Institute Political Studies Policy Certificate Program

This certificate program is designed to provide policy professionals with a crash course in military tactics and operational realities.

Featured Speakers:

Rachel Mackey

Robert Woodson

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April 2026

In-Person Event | Hudson Institute

Building the Future in Romania and Southeast Europe: A Conversation with Minister Dragoș Pîslaru

Featured Speakers:

Matthew Boyse

Dragoș Nicolae Pîslaru

April 2026

In-Person Event | Hudson Institute

Building the Future in Romania and Southeast Europe: A Conversation with Minister Dragoș Pîslaru

Join Senior Fellow Matt Boyse and Minister of European Investments Dragoș Nicolae Pîslaru for a fireside conversation about how infrastructure investments are enhancing security and economic resilience in Romania and Southeast Europe.

Featured Speakers:

Matthew Boyse

Dragoș Nicolae Pîslaru

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April 2026

In-Person Event | Hudson Institute

Postponed | Deterring Russia and China: Securing America’s Nuclear Future

Featured Speakers:

Rebeccah L. Heinrichs

Brandon Williams

April 2026

In-Person Event | Hudson Institute

Postponed | Deterring Russia and China: Securing America’s Nuclear Future

Join Senior Fellow and Keystone Defense Initiative Director Dr. Rebeccah Heinrichs and Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration Brandon Williams for a discussion on the administration's priorities in strengthening the US nuclear enterprise.

Featured Speakers:

Rebeccah L. Heinrichs

Brandon Williams

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April 2026

In-Person Event | Invite Only

The New India Conference

Featured Speakers:

Nisha Biswal

Kurt Campbell

Vijay Chauthaiwale

Dattatreya Hosabale

Hemang Jani

Kenneth Juster

Amb. Vinay Kwatra

Ram Madhav

Ashok Malik

Bethany Poulos Morrison

Richard Rossow

Joel Scanlon

Priyanka Chaturvedi

Moderators:

Lisa Curtis

Bill Drexel

Walter Russell Mead

Aparna Pande

April 2026

In-Person Event | Invite Only

The New India Conference

Hudson will convene leading policymakers, strategists, and scholars from India, the US, and their international partners to examine India’s transformation under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and its implications for global order, US-India relations, and the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific.