Beijing, 16 October 2022 (dpa) - Difficult times lie ahead, warned Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday as he opened the Chinese Communist Party congress. In a keynote address to some 2,300 delegates in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, the president warned of "potential dangers" as he called for China to be "prepared for worst case scenarios." "So adapt and be ready to withstand high winds, choppy waters and even dangerous storms," Xi said. Xi called for the country to follow his party leadership resolutely in order to rejuvenate the Chinese nation and expand "socialism with Chinese characteristics." The next five years are crucial, Xi said. Internationally, the Chinese leader warned of "immense risks and challenges." He also spoke of "global changes not seen in a century." He also praised the country's "necessary" zero-Covid policy, which brought "tremendous encouraging achievements" both in the fight against the spread of the virus and in terms of economic development. As the rest of the world tries to live with the virus, China is sticking to its zero-tolerance goal. Tens of millions of Chinese are currently fully or partially affected by lockdowns. He also reiterated the long-standing Chinese policy that Taiwan is part of China and noted that military force remains an option to bring the two back together. "The complete reunification of the motherland must be achived and can definitely be achieved," he told the congress. The focus of the party congress, conducted every five years, is the expansion of Xi's power as he looks to secure another term as party general secretary. The delegates, who almost never dissent from the Communist Party's Politburo, are expected to enshrine Xi's personal ideology in the party's constitution and to select a new central committee. After the week-long deliberations, the party leader is expected to be confirmed for an unprecedented third, five-year term at a plenary session of the new Central Committee. The 69-year-old is setting a precedent by disregarding term limits while age rules and term limits will be applied to members of the Politburo, the supreme policy-making body. The personnel change in the communist leadership is also a prelude to the next annual meeting of the Chinese government, expected to take place in March, when a new prime minister is to be selected and a new government formed.