Beijing has hinted at the new leadership line-up in its military theatre commands, with fresh faces emerging during last week’s party conclave in the seating area reserved for key commanders, filling vacancies left by China’s anti-corruption drive.
The fifth plenum of the Communist Party’s 20th Central Committee, which concluded last Thursday, focused on party discipline and political loyalty, confirming the expulsion of 33 full and alternate Central Committee members, including 16 senior military officers.
The expulsions were the latest consequences of an unprecedented anti-corruption storm that has swept through the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), triggering far-reaching personnel changes across its senior ranks.
Among the latest generals expelled from the party were three former theatre command leaders responsible for directing military operations in their respective strategic regions: Liu Qingsong, former political commissar of the Eastern Theatre Command; Huang Ming, former commander of the Northern Theatre Command; and Wang Haijiang, former commander of the Western Theatre Command.