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Zhongnánhai (中南海) is a complex of buildings in Beijing, located west of the Forbidden City, which serves as the central headquarters for the Communist Party of China.
Like how The Pentagon refers to the U.S. Department of Defense, Zhongnanhai is synonymous to the leaders of the People's Republic of China.
President Hu Jintao and other top PRC leadership figures often meet foreign dignitaries inside the complex. CCTV frequently shows footage of meetings inside the compound, but limits it largely to views inside buildings.
Chinese maps of Beijing show Zhongnanhai as a green area with a waterbody. The municipal government, however, is shown significantly with a red star.
Zhongnanhai is inaccessible to the general public. Its most significant entrance is the southern one at Xinhuamen (which means "Gate of New China"), surrounded by two slogans which wish long live to the "great Communist Party of China" and "invincible Mao Zedong Thought." The view behind the entrance is shielded by a wall with the slogan " Serve the People ", itself in the handwriting of Mao Zedong.
The Xinhuamen entrance lies just on the West Chang'an Avenue.