The uproar comes as a surprise to many in the West: Because US President Joe Biden and now also Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called Chinese leader Xi Jinping a dictator, Beijing immediately summoned their respective ambassadors. Xi’s designation as a dictator was „absurd,“ „irresponsible,“ „infringed on China’s political dignity,“ and, moreover, „an open political provocation.“ The Oxford English Dictionary defines the term „dictator“ as „a political leader who has complete power over a country.“ So what is Xi if not a dictator? And why is he, of all people, suddenly reacting so thin-skinned to this? After all, Article 1 of the Chinese constitution already states that the party is committed to „upholding the democratic dictatorship of the people.“