Chinese President Xi Jinping has appointed new commanders overseeing Beijing and Taiwan amid an unprecedented purge of military leadership.
According to state-run Xinhua News Agency on Sunday, Admiral Yang Zhibin was named commander of the Eastern Theater Command, which oversees Taiwan operations, at a promotion ceremony held the same day. Admiral Han Shengyan was also appointed as the new commander of the Central Theater Command, responsible for the defense of Beijing, Tianjin, and five provinces.
The newly appointed Central Theater Commander Han previously served as the Air Force commander of the Central Theater Command. The Air Force has seen relatively few public announcements related to corruption purges. Han attended a September military parade in place of former commander Wang Chang. The newly appointed Eastern Theater Commander Yang also comes from the Air Force and served as deputy commander of the Eastern Theater Command until recently. He attended the Nanjing Massacre memorial ceremony earlier this month.
This promotion ceremony was the first presided over by President Xi this year and came after a large-scale removal of senior generals throughout 2024. Lin Xiangyang, the former commander of the Taiwan-focused theater command, was dismissed in October on charges of violating party discipline and laws. Former Central Theater Commander Wang did not attend a military parade in Beijing in September, though the reason remains unknown.
According to Bloomberg, U.S. intelligence agencies believe widespread corruption throughout China's military is undermining President Xi's military ambitions. Chinese authorities are particularly concerned that corruption has compromised the weapons quality and operational capabilities of the Rocket Force, which oversees missile and nuclear forces. The Rocket Force would play a critical role should Beijing invade Taiwan.
The sweeping anti-corruption campaign targeting senior military officials is considered the largest military purge since 1976, following the death of Mao Zedong.
