China's Defence Ministry Confirms Investigation Into Top General Zhang Youxia
China's most senior military officer, General Zhang Youxia, is currently under formal investigation according to an official announcement from the country's defence ministry. This development represents the highest-profile case to emerge from an aggressive anti-corruption campaign targeting senior military leadership that has intensified in recent months.
Zhang's Prominent Position and Alleged Violations
Zhang Youxia serves as second-in-command under President Xi Jinping in his role as vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, China's supreme military command body. Long considered Xi's closest military ally, Zhang also holds membership in the elite politburo of the ruling Communist Party and is among the few senior officers with actual combat experience.
The defence ministry revealed on Saturday that both Zhang and Liu Zhenli, chief of staff of the CMC's joint staff department, are being investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline and law. According to reports from The Wall Street Journal, the allegations against Zhang include leaking information about China's nuclear-weapons programme to the United States and accepting bribes for official acts, including the promotion of an officer to defence minister.
Historical Context of Military Purges
The military has been a primary target of Xi Jinping's broad corruption crackdown since 2012, with the campaign reaching the upper echelons of the People's Liberation Army in 2023 when the elite Rocket Force came under scrutiny. Zhang's investigation marks only the second instance of a sitting general on the Central Military Commission facing such action since the Cultural Revolution of 1966-76.
Zhang has not appeared in public since 20 November, when he conducted talks with Russia's defence minister in Moscow. His potential removal follows the expulsion of former CMC vice-chair He Weidong from both the Communist Party and PLA in October last year on corruption charges. Eight top generals faced expulsion from the party on graft charges in October 2025, including He Weidong, while two former defence ministers have been purged in recent years.
Strategic Implications and Military Modernisation
Foreign diplomats and security analysts are monitoring developments closely, given Zhang's proximity to Xi Jinping and the Central Military Commission's crucial role in military command, modernisation efforts, and strategic posture. Despite the ongoing purges, military operations continue normally, though the crackdown has reportedly slowed procurement of advanced weaponry and affected revenues of major Chinese defence firms.
Singapore-based China security scholar James Char suggests that targeting Zhang indicates Xi is responding to criticism that the anti-corruption drive has been too selective. "Xi has been tapping on second-line PLA officers to fill those roles vacated by their predecessors – on an interim basis in most cases," Char noted, adding that China's military modernisers remain committed to Xi's goals of basic modernisation by 2035 and world-class armed forces by 2049.
Zhang's Military Background and Combat Experience
Born in Beijing, Zhang joined the army in 1968 and rose through the ranks, joining the military commission in late 2012 as the PLA's modernisation accelerated. His combat experience includes participation in China's brief but bloody border war with Vietnam in 1979, launched in response to Vietnam's invasion of Cambodia and ousting of the Beijing-backed Khmer Rouge.
At age 26, Zhang was deployed to the frontlines against Vietnamese forces and received rapid promotion. He also fought in another border clash with Vietnam in 1984. According to state media, "During the battle, whether attacking or defending, Zhang Youxia performed excellently." China scholars note that Zhang emerged from these conflicts as an advocate for modernisation in military tactics, weaponry, and training standards.
Regional Security Context
The investigation occurs amid China's increasingly assertive military posture in disputed regions including the East China Sea and South China Sea, as well as concerning Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory. Late last year, China conducted its largest military exercises to date around Taiwan, reflecting heightened tensions in the region.
