On July 31st, the Chinese Ministry of National Defense held a reception at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing to celebrate the so-called “98th Anniversary of the Founding of the Army.”
According to reports from various media outlets, compared to last year’s reception, this year’s main table was missing 7 active-duty generals.
According to public reports from overseas media, I checked and found that at least nine active-duty generals were absent from this reception. They are: He Hongjun, Executive Deputy Director of the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission; Wang Chunning, Commander of the People’s Armed Police Force, Zhang Hongbing, Political Commissar of the People’s Armed Police Force; Hu Zhongming, Commander of the Navy, Yuan Huazhi, Political Commissar of the Navy; Li Qiaoming, Commander of the Army, Qin Shutong, Political Commissar of the Army; Wang Qiang, Commander of the Central Theater, Xu Deqing, Political Commissar of the Central Theater.
Reported by the Liaoning Daily, on August 1st, the Liaoning Province held the “August 1st” military and political symposium, where “key leaders of the Northern Theater Command attended and made speeches.” However, the report only mentioned the Political Commissar of the Northern Theater Command Zheng Xuan, without referring to the Commander of the Northern Theater Command Huang Ming. In May this year, social media leaked that Huang Ming had been taken away for investigation.
Including the mentioned nine generals and Commander Huang Ming of the Northern Theater Command, a total of 10 active-duty generals seem to have “disappeared.” Furthermore, along with the dismissal of Miao Hua, a member of the Central Military Commission, and the disappearance of He Weidong, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission on March 11 this year, there are a total of 12 active-duty generals who have “disappeared.”
Since the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, before Miao Hua’s dismissal, at least five generals, nine lieutenant generals, and three major generals have been removed.
These include: Li Shangfu, member of the Central Military Commission, State Councillor, Minister of National Defense; Wei Fenghe, former member of the Central Military Commission, State Councillor, Minister of National Defense, and the first Commander of the Rocket Force; Zhou Yaning, the second Commander of the Rocket Force; Li Yuchao, the third Commander of the Rocket Force; and Ding Hanglai, former Air Force Commander.
Among the nine lieutenant generals: Zhang Zhenzhong, former Deputy Commander of the Rocket Force, Deputy Chief of the Joint Staff Department of the Military Commission; Li Chuanguang, former Deputy Commander of the Rocket Force; Sun Jinming, former Chief of Staff of the Rocket Force; Zhang Yulin, former Deputy Minister of the Equipment Development Department of the Military Commission; Ju Xinchun, former Deputy Minister of the Equipment Development Department of the Military Commission and Navy Commander of the Southern Theater Command; You Haitao, former Deputy Commander of the Army; Li Pengcheng, former Navy Commander of the Southern Theater Command; Deng Zhiping, former Deputy Commander of the Army; Li Zhizhong, Deputy Commander of the Central Theater Command.
The three major generals include: Lu Hong, former Director of the Rocket Force Equipment Department; Rao Wenmin, former Deputy Minister of the Equipment Development Department of the Military Commission; and Li Tongjian, former Deputy Minister of the Rocket Force Equipment Department.
In addition, Major General Liu Guangbin, Deputy Commander of the Rocket Force, had long been “missing,” while Major General Wu Guohua, former Deputy Commander of the Rocket Force, committed suicide by hanging.
Former Chief Political Commissar of the Rocket Force, General Xu Zhongbo, was dismissed due to ineffective supervision leading to the outbreak of a major case within the Rocket Force; and former Commander of the Strategic Support Force General Ju Qiansheng was removed from his position as the unit number was revoked.
Former Deputy Commander of the Strategic Support Force Major General Shang Hong had already “disappeared” before the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.
According to overseas media sources: After Miao Hua was investigated, several other high-ranking military officials closely associated with him, including the Rocket Force Commander Wang Houbin, Eastern Theater Commander Lin Xiangyang, member of the Central Military Commission Joint Operations Command Center Wang Xiubin, former Army Commander Han Weiguo, and the first Minister of Logistics Support under the Military Commission Zhao Keshi, were also under investigation for alleged serious violations of discipline and law.
A total of 39 active-duty generals, including those who have “disappeared,” been investigated, or dismissed, along with the former son-in-law of former Chinese President Li Xiannian and former Political Commissar of the National Defense University Liu Yazhou, amount to 40 individuals.
Following the Rocket Force scandal, in December 2023, analysts from the Cercius Group, a Canadian think tank specializing in Chinese elite politics, stated, “So far, in our investigations into the Chinese Rocket Force, we have tracked approximately 70 individuals being taken away.”
After Miao Hua was investigated, legal scholar Yuan Hongbing, currently residing in Australia, quoted sources within the Chinese regime, saying that on the first day of Miao Hua’s interrogation, he confessed wildly all night, revealing over 80 military personnel. With the cooperation of his three secretaries, he disclosed up to 1,300 military personnel, including nearly a hundred senior officers ranging from generals to lieutenant generals, most of whom were promoted by Xi Jinping himself or his confidants.
In summary, following the Rocket Force scandal and the Miao Hua case, the total number of active-duty and retired generals who have “disappeared,” been investigated, or dismissed far exceeds the aforementioned 40 individuals.
Since Xi Jinping took office, out of the 79 promoted generals, at least 23 have been investigated, dismissed, or “disappeared,” leading to an overall “incident rate” exceeding 20%.
The cases of the 40 mentioned generals being investigated, “disappeared,” or dismissed, reveal at least five points:
1. Shortly after the 20th National Congress in 2022, a wave of senior military leaders were purged due to the Rocket Force scandal.
2. In November 2024, Miao Hua, a member of the Central Military Commission and Director of the Political Work Department, fell from grace. Following his downfall, another group of senior military leaders were removed.
3. In March 2025, He Weidong, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, “disappeared.” His fall led to the removal of more senior military leaders.
4. On July 21st, the Chinese Liberation Army Daily stated that the Central Military Commission recently issued the “Regulations on Comprehensive Purification of Negative Influences and Reshaping the Image and Prestige of Political Cadres.” This indicates that the Chinese military has initiated a new round of purges, potentially targeting several senior generals involved in severe corruption, factionalism, and forming cliques.
5. Since the 20th National Congress, there have been four waves of purges within the military. Out of the seven members of the 20th Central Military Commission, only four remain today – Xi Jinping, Zhang Youxia, Liu Zhenli, and Zhang Shengmin. The other three members – He Weidong, Miao Hua, and Li Shangfu – have all been removed.
Due to the purges, where a group of senior generals were either removed, dismissed, or “disappeared,” it was expected that before the August 1st anniversary, the Central Military Commission would promote a new batch of generals to fill the vacancies. However, surprisingly, no promotions of generals were made before the August 1st anniversary this year – a highly unusual occurrence.
The circumstances highlighted above indicate sharp and intense power struggles within the Chinese Communist military.
In closing, the cases of the 40 generals being investigated, “disappeared,” or dismissed, outside of the severe issues involving Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe, briefly mentioned in reports about their expulsion from the Party, the military, and stripping of their generals’ titles, the real situations surrounding the other 38 generals are kept highly confidential, known only to a few top Communist officials. The vast majority of Chinese people, including millions of soldiers, remain in the dark.
The military, funded by taxpayers and tasked with safeguarding the country’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security, has seen a significant number of high-ranking officials falling. The majority of Chinese citizens, including millions of soldiers, lack knowledge and supervision rights. Is such a regime legitimate?
Confucius said, “The people cannot be ruled without trust.” Those in power must earn the people’s trust for the regime to stand firm.
One of the most critical aspects of earning public trust is to believe in the people. The fact that the top-echelon generals’ true situations are all kept in the dark, highly confidential and shielded from public view, showcasing distrust and extreme lack of confidence.
When those in power do not trust the people, how can they expect the people to trust them?
Moreover, since the aftermath of the 20th National Congress, the numerous incidents involving high-ranking generals indicate a serious lack of trust and an absence of accountability within the military.
The regime established the “Party Conduct and Integrity Responsibility System,” “Cadre Selection and Appointment Responsibility System,” and the “Chairman Responsibility System” within the Central Military Commission. With so many senior generals facing issues, have these responsibility systems been effectively implemented?
The answer is – no.
When those in power do not trust the people and fail to take responsibility when problems arise, it becomes exceedingly challenging to earn the people’s trust.
Over the course of Xi Jinping’s presidency from 2012 to 2022, more than 160 generals were investigated, surpassing the total number of generals who fell during the Chinese army’s internal wars, external wars, and the Cultural Revolution since its founding in 1927. The startling revelations of severe corruption expose a shocking reality.
Since not long after the 20th National Congress, from the top Communist Political Bureau member and Central Military Commission Vice Chairman, He Weidong, to various units including the Political Work Department of the Military Commission, the Army, Navy, Air Force, and the Regional Theater Commands, another group of senior military leaders have been implicated in corruption.
Why does the Communist Party of China shy away from informing the Chinese people and the millions of soldiers in the country about the corruption within the senior military ranks?
In my opinion, a significant reason is that the level of corruption within the military is so severe that unveiling the truth could lead to unrest among the people and the armed forces.
Since 2024, a crucial group of Xi Jinping’s most trusted associates within the military have been reassigned, investigated, or “disappeared.” A prominent example is the fall of the top trusted members – He Weidong, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, and Miao Hua, a member of the Central Military Commission and Director of the Political Work Department, essentially cutting off Xi Jinping’s right and left-hand men.
Since the 20th National Congress, the successive disappearances of high-ranking generals one after the other are a concrete demonstration of the crisis facing the Communist regime, edging dangerously close to a tipping point.
When even someone as prominent as the third-highest-ranking member in the Communist military like He Weidong could vanish at any moment, who in mainland China is truly safe? No one.
【Original News Source: Epoch Times】