Xi announces new military purges to root out corruption

Washington

Speaking this week at China's first political and military work conference in a decade, Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated the need for the military to root out corruption and strengthen its loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party. He also warned of “deep-rooted problems” in the army's politics, ideology, work style and discipline.

“The barrels of arms should always be in the hands of those who are loyal and reliable to the party and there should be no place for corrupt elements in the military to hide,” Xi said in his remarks, according to the Chinese public television channel CCTV.

In a lengthy overview, Xi urged the military to deepen its ideological transformation by following Communist Party theories, improving the leadership of party organizations and eradicating conditions that could allow corruption to flourish.

Chieh Chung, a military researcher at Taiwan's National Policy Foundation, said the remarks show that “Xi wants to emphasize the importance of the military being loyal to the party and its leaders while signaling concerns about how whose corruption affects the army” and its capabilities.

Xi “hopes these warnings can help accelerate the development of advanced technologies and equipment,” Chieh told VOA by telephone.

Since last July, China has ousted more than a dozen top military commanders, including former Defense Minister Li Shangfu, and leaders of the People's Liberation Army's Rocket Force.

Although the Chinese government has not publicly linked the removals to corruption, some foreign media and experts view their removal as part of the broader anti-corruption campaign launched by Xi since he came to power in 2012.

Reuters reported last September that Li was under investigation related to the purchase of military equipment.

The removal of top military leaders not only highlights the prevalence of corruption; it also raises other questions.

“Given that corruption has hampered Russia's ability to supply its military in the Ukraine war, this raises the question of whether China's military capabilities have been compromised by corruption or not,” Lin Ying-yu said. , a military expert at Tamkang University in Taiwan. VOA by telephone.

There are also concerns about the impact Xi's continued attempts to root out corruption will have on the military internally.

“When a former defense minister can be abruptly removed from office without any clear explanation, it will create a deep sense of fear within the military, as no one knows when he will be next to be purged,” he said. Su Tzu-yun said. , a military expert at the Taipei-based National Defense and Security Research Institute.

Su said it was part of the Communist Party's strategy of “rule by terror,” which allows Xi to concentrate decision-making power with the party's top leaders.

“Even though fighting corruption in the military is important to Xi, the anti-corruption campaign has become a political tool for him to consolidate his control over the military,” Su told VOA by telephone.

In January, the People's Liberation Army Daily published an opinion article emphasizing the importance of implementing Xi's instructions for the military and expanding the party's governance to the grassroots level.

“By strengthening supervision of military personnel, it creates a strong first line of defense for soldiers to comply with the rules and refuse to be corrupted,” said the opinion article published by the PLA Daily.

As Xi seeks to consolidate control and build loyalty, Chieh and Su see other potential side effects, such as the promotion of unqualified leaders and the impact that could have on capabilities and readiness of the Army.

“When Beijing places so much emphasis on party loyalty, it could reduce the military's combat capabilities and make the military huge but weak,” Su said.

Xi's expressed desire to continue fighting corruption also means China's military may have to go through a period of adjustment, Chieh said.

“Normally, the military's combat capabilities will decline after several rounds of purges, so I expect the Chinese military to go through a difficult period of adjustment and reorganization in the coming years,” he said. he told VOA.

And while senior U.S. officials have repeatedly emphasized that 2027 will be the year China's military aims to possess the capabilities needed to invade Taiwan, Chieh believes the purges and Xi's remarks at the political work conference suggest that the PLA may struggle to achieve this goal. .

“Given that China's military command system and rocket force capabilities may not have achieved the goal set by top leadership due to widespread corruption, I think this makes it even less likely “The Chinese military has the capabilities required to invade Taiwan by 2027,” he said.