August M
The near-disappearance of China’s top military leadership is drawing attention not only because of who has fallen, but because of how little Beijing is saying. The speed and opacity of the changes matter for global security, as the commission oversees the world’s largest standing armed forces.
DR News’ reporting highlights how the rapid dismantling of this body has unsettled long-time China watchers, who are now questioning whether President Xi Jinping’s grip on the military is tightening or being tested.
A hollowed command
China’s Central Military Commission is responsible for the overall command and administration of the armed forces. It sits at the core of the country’s power structure.
When the Communist Party reshuffled leadership in October 2022, the commission was presented as a seven-member team under Xi Jinping. Today, only two of those figures remain in place, including the president himself.
The latest removal involves Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia, who also served as commander-in-chief. Chinese authorities say he has been charged with “serious violations of the law and disciplinary violations.”
Analysts unsettled
The scope of the purge has triggered unusually blunt reactions. “What the hell is going on?” asked Casper Wichmann, a Danish China expert, in comments cited by DR News.
Wichmann, who runs the podcast KinaNørderne and co-founded the consultancy Sinolytica, said on P1 Orientation that analysts are “trying to read in the tea leaves.” He added, “We will probably never get a clear answer to that.”
According to DR News, the lack of detailed explanations has amplified speculation about internal struggles within China’s military and party leadership.
Corruption backdrop
Xi Jinping’s use of anti-corruption measures in the armed forces is not new. After taking power in 2012, he launched a sweeping campaign that also targeted senior officers.
That effort led to high-profile dismissals and reshuffles, particularly in sensitive units. Yet allegations continue to surface. In November, another vice chairman, He Weidong, was expelled on corruption charges.
Wichmann told DR News that it remains unclear whether the current cases reflect genuine wrongdoing, political maneuvering, or failures in office.
Power and risk
Zhang Youxia was widely viewed as loyal to Xi and central to plans to modernize the military. His removal, Wichmann said, raises doubts about how confident the president is in the institution’s reliability.
No new senior members have yet been appointed to the commission. In the short term, this creates uncertainty, even if younger, loyal officers are waiting in the wings.
Whether the purge ultimately weakens Xi’s military ambitions or further concentrates power around him will become clearer as China moves toward the next party congress in 2027.
Sources: DR News, P1 Orientation
