Latest news with #CMC
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
China removes senior general, naval chief & top scientist in military
The purge of China's powerful defence and security establishment continued as top military officials, including a senior general, chief of navy and a nuclear scientist, were expelled from the national legislature on Friday. General Miao Hua along with Vice Admiral Li Hanjun, chief of staff of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), and Liu Shipeng, deputy chief engineer of China National Nuclear Corporation, have been removed from the National People's Congress (NPC), the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported. Li is the latest of a string of PLA generals and a handful of defence industry executives to have been implicated in a sweeping crackdown in the military, the Post reported. Both have been stripped of their membership of the legislature, the report said. State-run Xinhua news agency reported that the standing committee of the NPC, which concluded its session here on Friday, also voted to remove top General Miao Hua from his position as a member of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the overall high command of the Chinese military, headed by President Xi Jinping. Miao, the youngest general in the Chinese military hierarchy, has been under probe for serious violations of discipline since November last year. He was dismissed from the NPC in April this year. Miao was also director of the Political Work Department of the CMC, a role critical in managing Communist Party ideology and personnel changes within the People's Liberation Army (PLA). His career advanced significantly after Xi assumed power, leading to roles in the Chinese Navy as a political commissar and eventually becoming the PLA's youngest admiral. The defence ministry said Miao was being investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline, a phrase used as a euphemism for corruption. Since he took over power towards the end of 2012, 72-year-old Xi has carried out massive purges in the country's over two-million-strong military, removing or punishing dozens of senior generals for corruption and indiscipline. Those who were punished included two defence ministers as Xi consolidated his hold on the armed forces and the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC). Xi has repeatedly emphasised the importance of party loyalty among PLA officials to strengthen ideological control and support China's goal of becoming a military superpower. Miao is the second CMC member to be removed from his position since the current leadership took office in 2022.
The Guardian
14 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Top Chinese general ousted from body that oversees China's military
A top Chinese general has been dismissed from the body that oversees the Chinese military in the latest sign that Xi Jinping's anti-corruption drive has reached the highest echelons of the armed forces. Miao Hua, a senior admiral from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) navy, was the director of the political work department of the central military commission (CMC), making him responsible for ideology and loyalty within the armed forces. The six-person CMC is one of the most powerful institutions in China and is headed by Xi himself. On Friday, a statement from the Chinese government confirmed that Miao had been dismissed. He was suspended last year and placed under investigation for 'serious violations of discipline', a byword for corruption. He was expelled from the National People's Congress, China's parliament, in April. The dismissal makes Miao one of the highest-ranking CMC officials to be purged since the 1960s, and the latest in a rush of senior military figures targeted. He Weidong, a vice-chair of the CMC, is also reported to be under investigation. The CMC is the governing body of the PLA, and oversees China's coastguard. Xi is the chair of the CMC, as well as being the leader of China's ruling Communist party (CCP) and the president. Miao's dismissal reflects the latest ructions in China's armed forces. Beijing is keen to present an image of strength and stability on the world stage. The purges risk disrupting that image, although at a time when global attention is focused on wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, senior personnel changes in China's military may garner less attention. US-China military dialogue, seen as essential for avoiding accidental conflicts, particularly in the Taiwan strait, have been limited under the presidency of Donald Trump, who has also fired several senior military officials. US military representatives travelled to Shanghai for talks in April, but there have been no public signs of high-ranking meetings. The US and Chinese defence ministers sometimes meet at the Shangri-la Dialogue, an annual defence forum which was held in Singapore last month. But this year China only sent a small, lower-ranking delegation. In the past two years, Xi has dismissed two defence ministers, Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe; two heads of the PLA's rocket force, which is responsible for missiles and the nuclear arsenal, and two senior CMC officials. Senior aerospace and defence business leaders have also been removed from a CCP advisory body. Many of the recent oustings appear to be related to an investigation into corruption in military procurement. Li, who was dismissed as defence minister in 2023 and expelled from the CCP last year, previously led the equipment procurement department. Several of his associates from the military and the equipment procurement department were also purged. Miao is the eighth member of the CMC to be ousted since Xi took power in 2012. The expulsion of CMC members was previously unheard of since the era of Mao Zedong. Xi took power with a promise to root out corruption in China, vowing to come after both the 'tigers and the flies'. Since then, millions of officials have been investigated, and hundreds of thousands reportedly penalised, including high-profile people being expelled or prosecuted. Having now ruled for more than a decade, however, many of the senior figures coming into the crosshairs of anti-corruption campaigns are people, such as Miao and Li, who Xi had personally appointed, raising questions about his ability to vet important appointments. One of the most high-profile of Xi's picks to fall was the former foreign minister Qin Gang. Qin disappeared from public view in June 2023, drawing global attention as one of China's most public-facing officials. Speculation that he was under investigation ran rampant until October when Beijing announced he had been removed from his post. No reason was given.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
14 hours ago
- Politics
- First Post
China expels PLA general, navy chief and nuclear scientist in sweeping anti-corruption purge
The purge of China's powerful defence and security establishment continued as top military officials, including a senior general, chief of navy and a nuclear scientist, were expelled from the national legislature on Friday. read more China's crackdown on its defence and security establishment intensified on Friday with the expulsion of several top military figures, including a senior general, the navy's chief of staff, and a nuclear industry official from the national legislature. According to the South China Morning Post, General Miao Hua, Vice Admiral Li Hanjun, chief of staff of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and Liu Shipeng and deputy chief engineer at China National Nuclear Corporation were removed from the National People's Congress (NPC). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Li is the most recent among several PLA generals and defence industry leaders to be caught up in the ongoing purge, the report said. The report also noted that both officials have lost their positions in the legislature. Separately, state news agency Xinhua reported that the NPC's standing committee, which wrapped up its session on Friday, voted to strip General Miao Hua of his membership in the Central Military Commission (CMC), the top command body of China's military, led by President Xi Jinping. Miao, the youngest general in the Chinese military hierarchy, has been under probe for serious violations of discipline since November last year. He was dismissed from the NPC in April this year. Miao was also director of the Political Work Department of the CMC, a role critical in managing Communist Party ideology and personnel changes within the People's Liberation Army (PLA). His career advanced significantly after Xi assumed power, leading to roles in the Chinese Navy as a political commissar and eventually becoming the PLA's youngest admiral. The defence ministry said Miao was being investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline, a phrase used as a euphemism for corruption. Since he took over power towards the end of 2012, 72-year-old Xi has carried out massive purges in the country's over two-million-strong military, removing or punishing dozens of senior generals for corruption and indiscipline. Those who were punished included two defence ministers as Xi consolidated his hold on the armed forces and the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC). STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Xi has repeatedly emphasised the importance of party loyalty among PLA officials to strengthen ideological control and support China's goal of becoming a military superpower. Miao is the second CMC member to be removed from his position since the current leadership took office in 2022. With inputs from agencies
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Xi Jinping removes top PLA general Miao Hua amid military crackdown
China has removed General Miao Hua, a senior figure responsible for enforcing political discipline in the armed forces, from the Central Military Commission, state-media Xinhua reported on Friday. This removal appears to be part of President Xi Jinping's campaign to root out corruption and tighten control over the military's top ranks. The decision was made during the 16th session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), which concluded in Beijing today. At the closing meeting, lawmakers also voted to adopt revised versions of the Law on Penalties for Administration of Public Security and the Law against Unfair Competition. The same session also voted to remove Miao from his position as a member of the CMC. CMC shake-up continues amid China's corruption probe The Central Military Commission (CMC) is the apex body that oversees the People's Liberation Army (PLA), overseeing military operations and strategic planning. It consists of six members and is led by President Xi. Miao, long seen as a trusted ally of Xi, played a key role in maintaining party loyalty within the armed forces. Miao had already been suspended from the CMC in 2024, reportedly under investigation for 'serious violations of discipline'— a phrase used by the Communist Party to indicate corruption. He was also expelled from parliament in April without any public explanation. Xi Jinping's military purge In April, reports also emerged that Xi had dismissed General He Weidong, vice-chair of the CMC and the PLA's second-in-command. The removal of He marked the most senior military sacking in China in decades, and the first time a uniformed CMC vice-chair was removed since 1967. Past inquiries and crackdowns by the Chinese government have also seen the dismissal of former defence ministers Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, both associated with the Rocket Force. The crackdown has not been limited to the military. Last year, Xi unexpectedly removed Qin Gang, a former foreign minister and long-time aide, from office. Officials say the campaign is aimed at curbing corruption and reinforcing discipline within the PLA. However, critics argue it also serves to remove Xi's political rivals and consolidate power.
The Star
18 hours ago
- Politics
- The Star
China ousts top general from elite military body as purge grows
Chinese President Xi Jinping has unseated more than a dozen senior military EPA-EFE via The Straits Times/ANN BEIJING (Bloomberg/Reuters): China has removed a top general from the nation's apex military body led by President Xi Jinping, as the defence establishment is facing a wave of purges. Admiral Miao Hua, 69, who oversees political loyalty in the armed forces, has been ousted from the national Central Military Commission (CMC), according to a statement from the National People's Congress Standing Committee. The six-man commission is the armed force's premier decision-making body and one of the most powerful institutions in China. Under Xi, there are two vice-chairmen serving as military leaders and three other members that included Adm Miao, who is seen as a close ally of the country's top leader. Adm Miao's photo was removed from the senior leadership page of the Defence Ministry's website. 'The Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission held a military representative conference on March 14 this year and decided to remove Miao Hua from his position as a representative of the 14th National People's Congress,' a statement from state news agency Xinhua said. The statement did not contain any other details, but the move marks another stage in Xi's ongoing anti-corruption purge of China's military. Xi's government has unseated more than a dozen senior military figures since launching a corruption investigation last summer into hardware purchases going back to 2017. That probe resulted in the removal of China's last two defence ministers from the Communist Party, as well as the ouster of several officials with ties to the secretive Rocket Force that oversees the nation's nuclear arsenal. Adm Miao was suspended from the CMC in 2024 as he was under investigation for 'serious violations of discipline'. For the ruling Communist Party, that language typically refers to a graft probe. In April, Adm Miao was expelled from Parliament without explanation. Adm Miao was stationed in the coastal province of Fujian when Xi worked there as a local official, according to his official biography. Xi personally elevated Adm Miao to the CMC. Another CMC member and China's second-ranking general, General He Weidong, has not been seen in public since the March 11 closing ceremony of the annual parliamentary sessions in Beijing. Since then, he has not appeared at a series of high-level Politburo and military public engagements. He is the third-most powerful commander of the People's Liberation Army and is considered a close associate of Xi. The Defence Ministry said in March it was 'unaware' of reports he had been detained. His photo remains on the ministry's website. In 2024, the Defence Ministry denied reports that Defence Minister Dong Jun was being probed on suspicion of corruption. Dong has continued to appear at public events, attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation defence ministers' meeting in Qingdao this week. BLOOMBERG, REUTERS
