Why the purge? China's Xi sidelines top military brass

China’s Anti-Corruption Drive Deepens as Xi Moves to Secure Continued Rule

News Analysis The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has launched its most aggressive anti-corruption campaign on record, ensnaring a growing number of senior officials in what analysts describe as a sweeping political consolidation drive by Chinese leader Xi Jinping ahead of the CCP’s 21st National Congress. In January alone, the CCP announced investigations into at least 10 high-ranking officials—an unusually intense start to the year that included…

Why has Xi gone nuclear on his most senior generals?

The purge of Zhang Youxia and other military leaders suggests Xi may be fearful of losing his grip on power.

Sale of nuclear secrets? Invasion of Taiwan? What the tea leaves reveal about the purge in China’s military leadership

When a brief note from the official Xinhua news agency announced just over a week ago the fall from grace of Zhang Youxia, China’s highest-ranking general, one thing was clear: no one, beyond President Xi Jinping’s inner circle (or perhaps not even them), knew why. Zhang was placed under investigation, along with Liu Zhenli, another top military commander, for alleged “serious violations of discipline and the law,” the statement said, offering n…

Why the purge? China's Xi sidelines top military brass

The official line these days out of China is that it's a stable partner "in an uncertain world." So what to make of the bombshell news out of Beijing? Xi Jinping has purged his top general Zhang Youxia, with accusations against the 75-year-old loyalist that range from corruption to leaking nuclear secrets to the US. We ask about the reasons and the timing, what with the move fuelling speculation that an invasion of Taiwan could now come sooner r…