China’s leader has a new military secretary, state TV video of rocket force visit suggests

Xi Jinping appears to have a new military secretary, going by state footage of the Chinese president’s recent inspection visits to People’s Liberation Army units.

Lieutenant General Fang Yongxiang, 58, was part of the group accompanying Xi during his visit to an unspecified brigade of the elite PLA Rocket Force last week.

Footage released by state broadcaster CCTV on Saturday showed Fang standing at arm’s length as Xi talked to several top commanders at the base in the southeastern province of Anhui.

A close-up shot showed Fang, along with General Zhang Youxia, China’s most senior uniformed military official, to be the only two generals next to Xi not wearing the rocket force uniform.

Fang was also seen by Xi’s side in CCTV footage of his visit in April to the Army Medical University in the southwestern city of Chongqing.

That clip showed Fang standing next to He Weidong, the second-ranked vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the body in charge of China’s armed forces. Zhang is the first-ranked vice-chairman at the CMC, which is headed by Xi.