The fall of high-profile General Zhang Youxia, who was seen as close to Xi Jinping, shows the extent of the Chinese leader's military anti-graft campaign and further consolidates his power
Pedro PARDOChina said on Saturday the senior vice chairman of its powerful Central Military Commission (CMC) and another high-ranking official were under investigation for suspected "serious violations of discipline", a common euphemism for corruption.
The announcement marks the latest push in a sweeping drive to root out graft at all levels of the party and state since President Xi Jinping came to power more than a decade ago.
"Following a review... it has been decided to initiate an investigation into Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli," the defence ministry said in a statement.
The two men were "suspected of serious violations of discipline and the law", the ministry said.
Zhang Youxia, 75, is China's highest-ranked general as the more senior CMC vice chairman.
He is also a member of the powerful Politburo, the 24-member executive body of the Chinese Communist Party.
He shares the vice chairman title with Zhang Shengmin, a general in Beijing's secretive rocket force and who is no relation.
Zhang Shengmin was promoted to the post in October after Beijing expelled his predecessor in another sweeping corruption purge.
Both generals rank below Xi, who has held the CMC chairmanship since 2012.
Liu, 61, is the chief of staff of the CMC's joint staff department, which oversees combat planning.
Rumours of a probe swirled this week after Zhang Youxia and Liu appeared to miss an official meeting chaired by Xi and attended by second-ranked CMC vice chairman Zhang Shengmin.
Xi has called graft "the biggest threat" to the Communist Party and said "the fight against corruption remains grave and complex".
Proponents say the policy promotes clean governance, but others say it also serves as a tool for Xi to purge political rivals.
In October, China announced it had launched corruption investigations into nine military officials.
As part of those probes, the defence ministry said it had expelled two top generals from the military.
They were He Weidong, the former second-ranked CMC vice chairman, and Miao Hua, the former head of the military's political work department.
In 2024, former Chinese defence minister Li Shangfu was expelled from the Communist Party after being ousted over offences including suspected bribery.
Li's predecessor, Wei Fenghe, was also expelled from the party and passed on to prosecutors over alleged corruption.
mya/mtp
Originally published on doc.afp.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.
Information from the News and our advertisers (Want to add your business to this to this feed?)
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sign up to receive notifications when a new Columbia Gorge News e-Edition is published.
Would you like to receive our news updates? Signup today!
Receive weekly updates on obituaries and death notices.
Oregon Capital Press presented by Columbia Gorge News
Receive updates on upcoming promotions and special sections.
Receive weekly updates on local sports news.
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
Commented