On the afternoon of September 23, Xi Jinping met with military officers at the rank of colonel and above stationed in Urumqi, Xinjiang. CCTV footage showed that sitting to Xi’s left was Liu Zhenli, a member of the Central Military Commission and the Chief of Staff of the Joint Staff Department of the Military Commission, with Qiu Yang, Deputy Director of the General Office of the Central Military Commission, sitting to his left. The Director of the General Office of the Central Military Commission, Fang Yongxiang, was not seen in the group photo.
This marks the third absence of Fang Yongxiang when Xi met with military representatives since August.
Xi Jinping has been the Chairman of the Central Military Commission for 13 years, and he has used three chief secretaries – Qin Shengxiang, Zhong Shaojun, and Fang Yongxiang. Now, all three of Xi’s chief secretaries seem to have disappeared. This situation can be considered a great anomaly within the current chaos of the Chinese Communist Party’s military.
Fang Yongxiang likely took on the role of Director of the General Office of the Central Military Commission and Director of the Chairman’s Office of the Central Military Commission in April last year.
Previously, Fang Yongxiang served as the Deputy Political Commissar and Army Political Commissar of the Southern Theater Command. The Army Military Medical University does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Southern Theater Command. Therefore, there were overseas reports speculating that Fang Yongxiang had been promoted to the Director of the General Office of the Central Military Commission, becoming Xi’s chief secretary.
However, on August 20, 2025, when Xi met with military officers at and above the rank of colonel stationed in Lhasa, Tibet, Fang Yongxiang was not present. CCTV footage showed Zhang Shengmin, a member of the Central Military Commission and Secretary of the Military Commission Discipline Inspection Commission, sitting to Xi’s left, with Yuan Honggang, Political Commissar of the Tibet Military Region, sitting to his right. Major General Qiu Yang, Deputy Director of the General Office of the Central Military Commission, was seen on Zhang Shengmin’s left, while Director Fang Yongxiang was absent.
On September 17, 2025, during the National Commemoration Meeting for the 80th Anniversary of the Victory of the War of Resistance against Japan, among the senior military leaders standing behind Xi, Colonel Zheng Shoudong of the Joint Operations Command Center of the Central Military Commission, Major General Han Shengyan and Major General Liang Ping of the Central Theater Command, Major General Wang Gang, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Major General Zhu Wenxiang, Deputy Commander of the Armed Police, and Major General Qiu Yang, Deputy Director of the General Office of the Central Military Commission were present. However, Director Fang Yongxiang was not seen in the group photo.
During Xi’s meeting with military officers at and above the rank of colonel stationed in Urumqi on September 23, Fang Yongxiang was absent for the third time. The likelihood of his involvement in an incident increased.
Fang Yongxiang has been “missing” for over a month now. So, where has Fang Yongxiang gone?
It is believed that Fang Yongxiang may be implicated in a severe corruption case involving…
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