China appoints new second-in-command general after military purge

China’s Communist Party has named a veteran who led anti-corruption efforts in the military as the country’s second-highest-ranking general, just days after nine generals were ousted in a major purge.

The appointment of Zhang Shengmin as the second-ranking vice chairman of the Central Military Commission was announced at the end of a four-day meeting of the Central Committee.

Zhang becomes the third-highest ranking official in the country’s top military body, after First Vice President and President Xi Jinping.

The nine exiled generals are suspected of serious financial crimes, China’s defense ministry said last week. However, according to analysts, this could also be seen as a political purge.

Their removal marks one of the Chinese Communist Party’s biggest public crackdowns on the military in decades.

For months, the Central Military Commission has signaled that it will undertake repression. In July, he issued new guidelines calling for the elimination of “toxic influence” in the military and listing “ironclad rules” for personnel.

The crackdown follows smaller public purges of other military officials in recent years, including former defense ministers Wei Fenghe and Li Shanfu.

After his promotion, Zhang, 67, will serve with another senior vice chairman, Zhang Yuxia, on the Central Military Commission.

He is a general in the Missile Forces of the People’s Liberation Army and served as Deputy Secretary of the Anti-Corruption Department of the Central Military Commission.

He comes from the central province of Shanxi and joined the army in 1978.

During the four-day meeting that ended Thursday, the party’s Central Committee also approved a new five-year plan, a broad document to guide its priorities.

The plan emphasizes “scientific and technological self-reliance,” something Chinese tech companies will need if the Trump administration continues to restrict access to computer chips and advanced software.

The document also calls for “accelerating the green transition” and “modernizing defense” as well as boosting domestic consumption to offset lost export earnings during times of geopolitical uncertainty.