Defence | China | Military Affairs
By Open Chronicle with agencies
China has removed two of its most senior military officers from the state Central Military Commission, dramatically reducing the size of the country’s supreme military leadership as President Xi Jinping continues a sweeping campaign against corruption inside the armed forces.
The removal of General Zhang Youxia and General Liu Zhenli was announced on Friday by China’s state news agency Xinhua following investigations into suspected serious violations of discipline and law.
The decision is particularly significant because Zhang was one of the most powerful military figures in China. As vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, he ranked immediately below Xi in the military hierarchy and was also a member of the Communist Party’s Politburo.
Liu served as a member of the commission and as chief of staff of the Central Military Commission’s Joint Staff Department, placing him at the centre of military planning and operations.
Their departure leaves only two active members of what was previously a seven-member Central Military Commission, including Xi himself.
Xi’s Military Leadership Shrinks Further
The Central Military Commission sits at the summit of China’s vast military establishment and exercises command over the People’s Liberation Army.
China formally maintains both Communist Party and state Central Military Commission structures, although in practice the two operate as a single leadership system.
Friday’s announcement by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress concerned Zhang and Liu’s positions on the state commission.
They have not yet been formally and publicly removed from their corresponding positions on the Communist Party’s Central Military Commission.
Nevertheless, their disappearance from the state command structure represents another major disruption within the upper ranks of the Chinese military.
Zhang’s removal is especially consequential because of his position as Xi’s senior military deputy. His departure removes one of the most experienced commanders from the leadership at a time when Beijing is overseeing an extensive modernisation of the PLA.
Corruption Crackdown Reaches the Highest Ranks
China’s military has become one of the principal targets of the anti-corruption campaign Xi launched after taking power in 2012.
The campaign has removed scores of senior officials and military commanders over allegations ranging from corruption and bribery to violations of Communist Party discipline.
Xi renewed his demand for greater action against corruption within the armed forces last month, urging senior Communist Party officials to intensify efforts to eliminate misconduct.
The latest removals demonstrate that even officers occupying some of the most powerful positions in the Chinese military remain vulnerable to investigation.
The campaign has already produced significant turnover across several important parts of the military establishment, including commands connected to missiles, strategic forces and defence procurement.
For Beijing, the official argument has consistently been that eliminating corruption is essential to strengthening military discipline, improving combat readiness and ensuring political loyalty.
Twelve Lawmakers Lose Their Seats
The consequences of the latest investigations extend beyond Zhang and Liu.
Their names disappeared from an updated list of deputies released by the National People’s Congress on Friday, confirming that they had lost their parliamentary seats.
Ten other lawmakers were also removed.
Among them was Lieutenant General Zhong Shaojun, the former director of the Central Military Commission General Office.
Zhong previously served in positions closely associated with Xi and became an influential figure within the military leadership structure.
General Ju Qiansheng, a former commander of the PLA Strategic Support Force, was also among those removed.
The Strategic Support Force previously played an important role in China’s space, cyber, electronic and information warfare capabilities before Beijing reorganised parts of the military command structure.
Another name on the list was Gao Shiwen, the former mayor of Nanchang, who previously worked for state-owned aerospace and defence conglomerate China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.
Former Western Theatre Commander Also Removed
The developments follow another significant personnel decision earlier in the week.
China’s top political advisory body stripped former General Zhao Zongqi of his membership on Wednesday.
Zhao previously commanded the PLA’s Western Theatre Command, the military command responsible for a vast region that includes China’s strategically sensitive frontier with India.
He held that position during the deadly 2020 confrontation between Chinese and Indian forces along their disputed Himalayan border.
His removal adds another prominent former commander to the growing number of senior military figures affected by Beijing’s political and disciplinary investigations.
Questions Over China’s Military Command
The extraordinary contraction of the Central Military Commission is likely to intensify scrutiny of the stability and internal dynamics of China’s military leadership.
A commission that previously contained seven members has now been reduced to only two active members, creating an unusually concentrated command structure around Xi.
The developments come as China continues one of the largest military modernisation programmes in the world, expanding its naval forces, nuclear arsenal, missile capabilities, air power and increasingly sophisticated space and cyber systems.
Beijing is simultaneously dealing with heightened strategic competition with the United States, tensions surrounding Taiwan and territorial disputes across the Indo-Pacific.
The removal of officers at such senior levels therefore has implications beyond domestic Chinese politics.
Although Beijing presents the campaign primarily as an effort to eliminate corruption and reinforce discipline, the continuing disappearance of senior commanders also raises questions about military governance, political loyalty and the pace at which China may need to rebuild its highest command structure.
For Xi, who serves as chairman of the Central Military Commission as well as president and Communist Party leader, the latest purge further reinforces his direct authority over the People’s Liberation Army.
At the same time, the removal of some of China’s most senior commanders demonstrates the scale of the upheaval taking place inside an institution that Beijing regards as central to its ambitions of becoming a leading global military power.