BEIJING, Sept 19: Chinese President Hu Jintao on Sunday replaced ageing leader Jiang Zemin as the nation's highest military chief, the final stage in the ruling Communist Party's first transfer of power.

Mr Hu's long-awaited rise to the chairmanship of the party's powerful Central Military Commission culminates a leadership transition that began in November 2002 when he replaced Mr Jiang as party head.

Mr Hu, 61, also replaced Mr Jiang as president in March 2003. He has now solidified his position as the core of the fourth generation of communist leadership following the revolutionary Mao Zedong, economic reformer Deng Xiaoping and Jiang, 78.

Hu's appointment was confirmed on the final day of a high-level meeting of the party's Central Committee, which also approved a wide-ranging policy document aimed at consolidating party power through the democratization of its secretive inner workings.

"The plenum unanimously agreed that this (Hu's promotion) is conducive to upholding the fundamental principle and system of the party's absolute leadership over the military," a communique said.

It "is also conducive to the strengthening of the military's revolutionization, modernization and regularization process".

Sources said before the announcement that there was much pressure within the central committee for Mr Jiang to retire, following in the footsteps of Deng who quit as chairman of the military commission in 1989 in favour of Mr Jiang. -AFP