The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on Tuesday held its 96 birthday with the president Xi Jinping, who is also the head of the armed forces, sending a message asking “expand capacity and combat readiness”as well as accelerating efforts to promote the modernization of an army that has around two million troops.
But in the military circles of Beijing, rather than the celebrations for the anniversary of the founding of the PLA, the burning issue was the new anti-corruption campaign that has dragged high-ranking officials from the department in charge of supervising the country’s ballistic missiles and nuclear arsenal.
It had been a long time since the capital of the Asian giant had been rumored about the fatal fate of the general Li Yuchaocommander of the PLA Rocket Force, and his deputy, Gen. Liu Guangbin. Both had been out of the public spotlight for several months and this week the state media have confirmed that they were being investigated by the Commission for Disciplinary Inspection, the anti-corruption body of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), headed by President Xi Jinping himself.
The last purge in the army It is significant because it has taken down an army heavyweight like Li, who last year was also promoted to a member of the Central Committee, the highest leadership body of the ruling Communist Party (CCP).
In the past decade, since Xi Jinping launched a mega anti-corruption campaign early in his tenure that ended the career of thousands of civil servants Of all levels, Li has been the highest-ranking general involved in one of these investigations.