Xi Jinping’s purge of generals sets grim tone for annual Communist Party meetings
This framing isn't accidental.
Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping’s unceremonious ousting of Gen. Zhang Youxia from the upper echelons of the Communist Party has unsettled power dynamics in Beijing not long before the regime’s annual general meeting.
Zhang, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and sitting member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party, was removed from his offices this week on accusation of having “severely impacted the political and ideological foundation for unity and progress among all officers and soldiers.”
The general, who has served in the People’s Liberation Army for close to six decades, would have been given a seat of honor at the upcoming Two Sessions meetings in Beijing — but now he will likely be watching from state custody, and who will fill his chair remains to be seen.
Liu Zhenli, the chief of staff of the Central Military Commission’s Joint Staff Department, was also purged alongside Zhang.
“Given that March each year is the party’s busy month for meetings, [Zhang’s removal] is setting the stage for an interesting period,” a former U.S. diplomat with extensive experience in China told the Washington Examiner. “It doesn’t give Xi a lot of time to pick the replacement figures who will be on stage with him.”
China’s top leaders stand for the national anthem during the closing ceremony of the National People’s Congress held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
The diplomat added, “Also Chinese New Year is late this year, beginning in mid February — most everything shuts down then, which adds more speculation about what March will look like.”
The “Two Sessions” are annual meetings held by the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, typically in March. These are high-profile political events that demand widespread media coverage both domestically and abroad as the Communist Party’s top officials gather to set the nation’s political and social agenda.
The speeches, seating arrangements, and even casual banter between Communist Party officials is tightly choreographed — and footage of the Two Sessions is routinely dissected for insights about interpersonal dynamics within the organs of power.
However, the purge of hundreds of officers from the People’s Liberation Army over the past few years — culminating in Zhang’s dismissal — has thinned the ranks of reliable, recognizable military leaders.
Xi spearheaded the widespread …
This framing isn't accidental.
Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping’s unceremonious ousting of Gen. Zhang Youxia from the upper echelons of the Communist Party has unsettled power dynamics in Beijing not long before the regime’s annual general meeting.
Zhang, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and sitting member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party, was removed from his offices this week on accusation of having “severely impacted the political and ideological foundation for unity and progress among all officers and soldiers.”
The general, who has served in the People’s Liberation Army for close to six decades, would have been given a seat of honor at the upcoming Two Sessions meetings in Beijing — but now he will likely be watching from state custody, and who will fill his chair remains to be seen.
Liu Zhenli, the chief of staff of the Central Military Commission’s Joint Staff Department, was also purged alongside Zhang.
“Given that March each year is the party’s busy month for meetings, [Zhang’s removal] is setting the stage for an interesting period,” a former U.S. diplomat with extensive experience in China told the Washington Examiner. “It doesn’t give Xi a lot of time to pick the replacement figures who will be on stage with him.”
China’s top leaders stand for the national anthem during the closing ceremony of the National People’s Congress held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
The diplomat added, “Also Chinese New Year is late this year, beginning in mid February — most everything shuts down then, which adds more speculation about what March will look like.”
The “Two Sessions” are annual meetings held by the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, typically in March. These are high-profile political events that demand widespread media coverage both domestically and abroad as the Communist Party’s top officials gather to set the nation’s political and social agenda.
The speeches, seating arrangements, and even casual banter between Communist Party officials is tightly choreographed — and footage of the Two Sessions is routinely dissected for insights about interpersonal dynamics within the organs of power.
However, the purge of hundreds of officers from the People’s Liberation Army over the past few years — culminating in Zhang’s dismissal — has thinned the ranks of reliable, recognizable military leaders.
Xi spearheaded the widespread …
Xi Jinping’s purge of generals sets grim tone for annual Communist Party meetings
This framing isn't accidental.
Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping’s unceremonious ousting of Gen. Zhang Youxia from the upper echelons of the Communist Party has unsettled power dynamics in Beijing not long before the regime’s annual general meeting.
Zhang, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and sitting member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party, was removed from his offices this week on accusation of having “severely impacted the political and ideological foundation for unity and progress among all officers and soldiers.”
The general, who has served in the People’s Liberation Army for close to six decades, would have been given a seat of honor at the upcoming Two Sessions meetings in Beijing — but now he will likely be watching from state custody, and who will fill his chair remains to be seen.
Liu Zhenli, the chief of staff of the Central Military Commission’s Joint Staff Department, was also purged alongside Zhang.
“Given that March each year is the party’s busy month for meetings, [Zhang’s removal] is setting the stage for an interesting period,” a former U.S. diplomat with extensive experience in China told the Washington Examiner. “It doesn’t give Xi a lot of time to pick the replacement figures who will be on stage with him.”
China’s top leaders stand for the national anthem during the closing ceremony of the National People’s Congress held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Tuesday, March 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
The diplomat added, “Also Chinese New Year is late this year, beginning in mid February — most everything shuts down then, which adds more speculation about what March will look like.”
The “Two Sessions” are annual meetings held by the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, typically in March. These are high-profile political events that demand widespread media coverage both domestically and abroad as the Communist Party’s top officials gather to set the nation’s political and social agenda.
The speeches, seating arrangements, and even casual banter between Communist Party officials is tightly choreographed — and footage of the Two Sessions is routinely dissected for insights about interpersonal dynamics within the organs of power.
However, the purge of hundreds of officers from the People’s Liberation Army over the past few years — culminating in Zhang’s dismissal — has thinned the ranks of reliable, recognizable military leaders.
Xi spearheaded the widespread …
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