Beijing: In one of the most significant political purges under President Xi Jinping’s leadership, China has expelled two of its highest-ranking military officials — General He Weidong and Admiral Miao Hua — from the Communist Party and the military on charges of corruption. The move marks a major escalation in the anti-graft campaign that has rocked the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) since 2023 and comes just days before a crucial Communist Party meeting in Beijing.
According to a statement released by China’s Ministry of Defense on Friday, both He Weidong, the country’s second-highest-ranking general, and Miao Hua, the former head of the PLA’s Political Work Department, were found guilty of “serious violations of Party discipline” and “duty-related crimes involving extremely large sums of money.”
Defense ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said the offenses committed by He, Miao, and seven other senior military officials were “of a grave nature, with extremely detrimental consequences.” The ministry described their removal as a “significant achievement” in the Communist Party’s ongoing anti-corruption campaign, which has increasingly focused on the military’s top brass.
He Weidong’s removal is particularly notable as it marks the first time since the 1966–1976 Cultural Revolution that a sitting vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC) has been expelled. The 68-year-old general, who was widely regarded as a close ally of President Xi, also sat on the Politburo — the Communist Party’s second-highest decision-making body. His absence from public appearances since March had already sparked speculation about an internal investigation, but Friday’s announcement marks the first official confirmation.
The timing of the announcement is also significant. It comes just days before the Communist Party’s Central Committee — a body of more than 200 senior officials — is set to convene its Fourth Plenum in Beijing. Political analysts suggest that Xi may use the meeting to formalize new appointments and consolidate control over the military by filling several vacant posts within the Central Military Commission.
“Xi is cleaning house for sure,” said Wen-Ti Sung, a fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub. “The formal removal of He and Miao means he will get to appoint new members of the Central Military Commission — which has been virtually half empty since March — at the upcoming Plenum.”
Miao Hua, who had served as the PLA’s top political officer, was already under investigation since November 2023 and was removed from his position on the Central Military Commission in June. His dismissal, now confirmed as part of a corruption case, aligns with a broader pattern of disappearances and removals within China’s defense establishment over the past year.
Among the other officials named in the defense ministry’s announcement are He Hongjun, a senior official from the PLA Political Work Department; Wang Xiubin from the CMC’s Joint Operations Command Centre; former Eastern Theatre Command commander Lin Xiangyang; and two former political commissars of the PLA Army and Navy. Observers have noted that many of these officers had been missing from public view for months, fueling speculation of internal investigations.
Former People’s Armed Police commander Wang Chunning, also implicated in the statement, was removed from China’s national legislature last month along with three other senior PLA generals.
President Xi Jinping has made anti-corruption a central theme of his leadership since taking power in 2012, describing it as essential to preserving Party unity and military loyalty. Over the past decade, hundreds of military officials have been disciplined or dismissed, though analysts say the campaign also serves as a tool for Xi to reinforce his personal control over the armed forces.
He Weidong’s downfall carries particular weight given his long association with Xi. Their professional ties date back to the late 1990s when both served in Fujian and Zhejiang provinces. He later commanded the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command, a strategically vital region facing Taiwan. In 2022, He was promoted directly to vice-chair of the CMC, bypassing the usual step of serving on the Party’s 205-member Central Committee — an elevation seen at the time as a sign of Xi’s confidence in him.
He was also known for his role in directing the PLA’s large-scale live-fire military exercises around Taiwan in August 2022, after then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei triggered outrage in Beijing. The Pentagon had described He as a key architect of those drills, which were seen as the most aggressive Chinese military maneuvers near the island in recent years.
With He and Miao’s expulsions, half of the Central Military Commission’s seats are now vacant, giving Xi a rare opportunity to reshape the military’s top leadership ahead of the Central Committee Plenum. Analysts believe the move will further tighten Xi’s grip over the PLA, eliminating potential dissent and reinforcing his campaign to maintain absolute Party control over the armed forces.
As Wen-Ti Sung put it, “This is not just about corruption — it’s about loyalty. Xi wants a military that is disciplined, obedient, and personally loyal to him.”
