Chinese defense chief caught in military corruption storm - what's next?
Third high-ranking defense minister faces corruption probe in Chinaʼs military clean-up efforts. Top-level military reshuffling continues as previous ministers already expelled from Communist Party
In a major shake-up Dong Jun‚ Chinaʼs defense minister since Dec-23‚ got caught in an anti-corruption investigation thats hitting the countryʼs military leadership
The probe marks an unexpected turn - Dong became the third straight defense chief to face corruption allegations (a pattern that started with his predecessors Li Shangfu and Wei Fenghe). Both earlier ministers got kicked out of the Communist Party this summer for taking big bribes and mis-using their positions
Last week Dong skipped a meet-up with US defense chief in Laos; citing issues about Taiwan. His role in military talks with America seemed promising at first - he helped restart commander-level discussions last fall. However he didnt get picked for the powerful Central Military Commission or State Council positions which is quite unusual for someone in his job
The clean-up affected many others in the military ranks:
- Nine PLA generals removed from national legislature
- Defense industry bosses lost positions
- Strategic departments leadership changed
“The corruption threads keep unraveling when you pull them“ [[Georgetown professor Dennis Wilder noted]] - showing how deep this issue goes in Chinaʼs military system. The Partyʼs statement about previous ministers was harsh: they “betrayed trust“ and “polluted“ the military environment
