Image: from Vantage Monitor | Global OSINT X@Vantagemonitor
By Open Chronicle News Desk
BEIJING — In one of the most significant political shifts in decades, the Chinese government has launched a formal investigation into General Zhang Youxia, the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The announcement, confirmed by the Ministry of National Defense on Saturday, signals a dramatic escalation of President Xi Jinping’s multi-year campaign to consolidate control over the armed forces.
General Zhang, 75, serves as the first-ranked vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC) and is a member of the elite Politburo. Long considered one of Xi’s most trusted allies—with personal ties dating back to their fathers’ service together in the Chinese Civil War, Zhang was widely seen as “untouchable” within the military hierarchy.
CHINA'S MILITARY EARTHQUAKE: Top Brass Vanish into the Purge: Beijing just axed its biggest guns, Gen. Zhang Youxia, President Xi's once untouchable No. 2 on the Central Military Commission, and Gen. Liu Zhenli, the iron-fisted chief of PLA Joint Staff.
Both now "under… pic.twitter.com/PLLcv7px8L— Mihir Jha (@MihirkJha) January 25, 2026
The Ministry stated that Zhang, along with General Liu Zhenli, the PLA’s chief of joint staff, is being investigated for “suspected serious violations of discipline and law,” a phrase commonly used by the Communist Party to denote high-level corruption. Reports from The Wall Street Journal and other outlets suggest the allegations are severe, ranging from accepting massive bribes for promotions to the shocking accusation of leaking “core technical data” regarding China’s nuclear weapons program to the United States.
The PLA Daily, the military’s official mouthpiece, published a stinging editorial following the announcement, accusing the generals of undermining the “absolute leadership” of the Party and damaging the ideological foundation of the military. The purge leaves the CMC, originally a seven-member body, severely hollowed out, with only President Xi (as chairman) and General Zhang Shengmin (the discipline chief) remaining in their roles.
Analysts suggest this “total annihilation of the high command” reflects deep-seated distrust at the highest levels of the Chinese leadership. As Beijing pushes toward a 2027 goal of full military modernization and potential readiness for conflict over Taiwan, the removal of its most experienced war veterans, Zhang and Liu, who were among the last serving officers with actual combat experience, could significantly impact the PLA’s operational command and decision-making in the short term.
The investigation follows the expulsion of eight other top generals in October 2025 and the earlier ousting of former defense ministers, underscoring that in Xi’s military, no rank or personal history provides immunity from the ongoing anti-graft drive.