The Chinese Communist Party recently announced the handling of two former defense ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, raising speculations about the reasons behind their downfall. Wei Fenghe was accused of “disloyalty”, sparking rumors of “treason and collaboration with the enemy”. Experts suggest that Wei Fenghe may have been involved in leaking secrets, but the official language used may have hidden intentions, and Xi Jinping’s strong military reforms could lead to two extreme outcomes.
On June 27, the Central Political Bureau led by CCP leader Xi Jinping formally charged Wei Fenghe and his successor Li Shangfu, stripping them of party and military membership, revoking their rank of general, and potentially facing further imprisonment.
Official descriptions of the alleged crimes of Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe are similar, with Wei Fenghe accused of “disloyalty”, causing speculation.
An article by South China Morning Post on July 10 suggested that, as implied in the official indictment, former Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe may have been compromised by hostile forces.
Among all senior generals who have fallen in Xi’s anti-corruption campaign, Wei is the only one described as “disloyal”. According to interviewed Chinese scholars, the term “disloyal” vividly evokes memories of early CCP leaders like Wang Zhong and Gu Shunzhang, who defected to the Nationalist Party.
Yuan Zongji, former Dean of the Institute of Political Warfare at Taiwan’s National Defense University, stated to Epoch Times on July 11 that for Xi Jinping’s military reign, loyalty issues should be taken more seriously than corruption issues. He suggested that Wei Fenghe’s disloyalty may involve significant leaked military secrets related to the Rocket Force. There were reports earlier that detailed information about the deployment of the entire Rocket Force base and the names of key commanders were known by American intelligence agencies. The level of officials who provided such deep confidential information must be quite high, which is why both former and current commanders of the Rocket Force have encountered trouble.
The China Aerospace Studies Institute of the United States Air Force released a report on October 24, 2022, detailing the organizational structure of the Chinese Rocket Force. The 255-page report extensively discloses the organizational structure of the Rocket Force from high-level command systems to logistics production bases, including specific information such as base addresses, main functions of units, names of commanders in both Chinese and English, and unit designations.
The report presents a hierarchical chart showing photos and names of key personnel in various Rocket Force departments and their relationships. It also marks the deployment of the Rocket Force in various regions of China on the map. The report even explains how to interpret unit designations.
After a large number of generals from the Chinese Rocket Force fell from grace, this report was seen as evidence of possible leaks.
However, Yuan Zongji believes that whether Wei Fenghe was involved in leaking secrets or was bought by foreign forces remains a mystery. Due to the limited information released by the CCP, everyone can only piece together the closest approximation of the truth through various rumors.
Yuan Zongji said that the interpretation by South China Morning Post may also be influencing public opinion, as handling the situation from the angle of disloyalty rather than significant corruption could potentially lead up to Zhang Yuxia (Vice Chairman of the Military Commission), suggesting that authorities may be engaged in some form of damage control. “South China Morning Post is likely subject to…