The funeral meeting in connection with the death of the former President of the People's Republic of China, ex-General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China Jiang Zemin began in Beijing. This is reported by the Xinhua news agency.

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech to the audience. "Today, we solemnly hold a memorial meeting to mourn our beloved comrade Jiang Zemin with great sorrow," the Chinese leader said.

He stressed that "the whole party, the whole army and all the citizens of the country experience endless sorrow at the death of such a great figure."

The funeral event is held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. All participants honored the memory of Jiang Zemin with three minutes of silence.

Earlier it was reported that the body of the former President of the People's Republic of China, ex-Secretary General of the Central Committee of the Communist Party was cremated at the Babaoshan Memorial Cemetery. Before that, Xi Jinping paid tribute to Jiang Zemin at the main hospital of the People's Liberation Army of the People's Republic of China.

Jiang Zemin passed away on November 30, 2022 at the age of 96. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed condolences to Chinese President Xi Jinping on the death of the former chairman of the republic.