Recently, two former Chinese State Councillors and Defense Ministers, Li Shangfu and Wei Feng, have been sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for charges including bribery. The official announcement emphasized the importance of “strictly governing the military” and “eradicating corruption,” which has caused unrest among the mid-level and lower-ranking officials in the Chinese military, leaving them feeling insecure.
According to the state-owned media Xinhua News Agency, Wei Feng and Li Shangfu, both former members of the Central Military Commission and State Councillors, were sentenced to death with a reprieve for bribery charges. Li Shangfu was also found guilty of bribery, earning him a combined death sentence with a reprieve. After the reprieve period, the sentences will be commuted to life imprisonment without the possibility of sentence reduction or parole.
Following the announcement of the military court’s verdict, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army immediately held meetings in the navy, air force, rocket force, and major theaters to convey the trial results. According to an insider, Wu Kun (pseudonym), most military officers remained silent upon learning of the verdict.
Wu Kun stated, “Upon hearing this sentence, the troops were shocked. In decades, we have never heard of such a senior general of the Central Military Commission being sentenced to death with a reprieve. They did not expect the punishment to be this severe. Many are now worried that there will be further crackdowns and arrests in the future.”
This severe punishment against high-ranking military officers is considered unprecedented in recent years within the Chinese Communist Party. Prior to this, top military officials like Guo Boxiong, Xu Caihou, and Fang Fenghui, who were removed from their positions, did not receive death sentences with a reprieve.
Looking ahead, the primary task within the military is expected to focus on studying speeches within the Central Military Commission and editorials from the PLA Daily, further purging the network of relationships involving Li Shangfu and others in the military. Those directly implicated have been dealt with, and investigations into related individuals may continue in an effort to “eradicate any remaining poison” and maintain ideological alignment with the Central Military Commission.
Observers of Chinese military personnel affairs, Mr. Kang, noted that the simultaneous sentencing of Wei Feng and Li Shangfu to death with a reprieve indicates a significant decrease in tolerance for high-ranking generals within the Chinese Communist Party.
He explained, “In the past, when dealing with high-ranking military officers, there was usually some political leeway left. Now, not only are they sentenced to death with a reprieve, but they are also ineligible for sentence reduction or parole, indicating Xi Jinping’s harsher stance against those he promoted. In Mao Zedong’s words, it means they will ‘never rise again.'”
In the 19th Chinese Communist Party Congress report, Xi Jinping proposed to “accelerate building the military into a world-class force” and achieve the goal of “building a strong military in a hundred years” on schedule.
However, between 2024 and 2026, several generals promoted by Xi Jinping, including deputy chairmen and members of the Central Military Commission, as well as commanders and political commissars of the navy, air force, and rocket force, have encountered troubles, causing continued turmoil among the top military brass.
Mr. Kang further stated, “In the past two years, many generals who were purged belong to the core military backbone promoted post the 19th Congress. These individuals were heavily involved in Taiwan Strait preparedness, missile development, joint operations of the military commission, and military procurement. The affected personnel are no longer just retired generals but also a significant number of current central committee members, active senior generals, and theater commanders. From this perspective, they are believed to have been implicated not only due to corruption but also due to concerns about political loyalty.”
Several scholars have pointed out that high-ranking officers like Wei Feng, Li Shangfu, Zhang Youxia, and Liu Zhenli had significant influence within the military. Any doubts about their loyalty by Xi Jinping signals a serious political crisis for these generals.
Li Shangfu, 68, had a long career within the Chinese Communist Party’s equipment system, serving as the Deputy Minister of Equipment in the General Equipment Department and the Minister of Equipment Development within the Central Military Commission. He succeeded Wei Feng as Defense Minister in March 2023 but disappeared from public view after July of the same year, subsequently being dismissed and investigated.
One insider familiar with the military revealed that Li Shangfu’s additional bribery charge in his indictment has drawn attention to the high-level relationships within the equipment system.
The insider explained, “Li Shangfu has been working in the equipment system for a long time, and Zhang Youxia also had a long history overseeing the equipment system. Now that Li Shangfu is charged with ‘bribery,’ naturally, people will think of his superior connections. Within the Chinese Communist Party, such issues are often categorized as ‘cliques’ and ‘factional groupings.'”
A Chinese legal expert, known as He Rong, remarked that adding the charge of “bribery” against Li Shangfu has legally established a link between him and his former superiors.
He stated, “The Chinese Communist Party has always been adept at criminalizing political issues. Since Li Shangfu is implicated in bribery, it implies there must be recipients of the bribes. The specific amount of money involved has not been disclosed by the authorities as they are concerned that the sentencing severity could hint at the true nature of the case.”
On January 24th, the Chinese Ministry of National Defense announced that Zhang Youxia, a member of the Central Political Bureau and Deputy Chairman of the Central Military Commission, along with Liu Zhenli, a member of the Central Military Commission and Staff Officer of the Joint Staff Department, were suspected of serious violations of discipline and law. Following this announcement, various rumors surrounding Zhang Youxia’s downfall and power struggles within the Chinese military continued to escalate.