China's Military Purge Deepens: Top Generals Ousted from CMC Amid Xi's Consolidation of Power

On August 28, 2026, China's National People's Congress Standing Committee formally removed Gen. Zhang Youxia, former vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and Gen. Liu Zhenli, former CMC member and Joint Staff Department chief, from their state CMC positions, according to state media Xinhua and corroborated by multiple international outlets.[1][2] The move followed their January 2026 placement under investigation for 'serious violations of discipline and law,' a euphemism often tied to corruption or disloyalty. Two additional figures—Zhong Shaojun, Xi's longtime aide, and Ju Qiansheng, former commander of the PLA Strategic Support Force—were also stripped of NPC deputy seats.[3]

This latest action reduces the state CMC to just Xi Jinping and one other active member, Gen. Zhang Shengmin, who oversees discipline. Parallel Party CMC structures remain formally intact but functionally aligned. The purge builds on a years-long campaign that has removed over 100 senior PLA officers since 2022, including commanders across branches and the Rocket Force, raising documented concerns about combat readiness from analysts at CSIS and others.[4]

Zhang and Liu were rare active-duty generals with combat experience from conflicts with Vietnam; their removal, alongside others, has left the high command depleted of operational expertise. Reports indicate the moves may reflect both anti-corruption efforts and power dynamics, with some analyses pointing to challenges to Xi's 'chairman responsibility system' in military command.[5][6] Broader implications include potential short-term strains on PLA cohesion and modernization, amid heightened geopolitical scrutiny of Beijing's leadership stability and its effects on regional security dynamics, particularly regarding Taiwan contingencies.

Ongoing public calls for reporting procurement irregularities in the Rocket Force underscore the campaign's persistence. While official statements frame actions as disciplinary, the scale suggests systemic efforts to centralize authority under Xi, with ripple effects on global assessments of China's military reliability.