Chinese General He Weidong ousted amid corruption probe linked to Xi Jinping

Lieutenant General He Weidong (何衛東), the third in command of the Chinese military, is reportedly under investigation for corruption allegations.

On the 11th (local time), the Financial Times reported, citing sources, that He was recently dismissed from his position and was ousted due to corruption allegations. Some sources indicated that he is being detained by authorities for questioning. The position of vice chairman of the Central Military Commission is the highest in the Chinese military and is responsible for managing the 2 million People's Liberation Army, assisting President Xi Jinping, who is also the chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Party and the state.

He was appointed as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission in October 2022, and in March of the following year, he became vice chairman of the state Central Military Commission alongside Zhang Youxia (74). He is regarded as one of President Xi Jinping's key confidants within the military. Speculation about He being detained for corruption began to spread after he was not seen in public following the National People's Congress closing ceremony on the 11th of last month. However, the Ministry of National Defense stated that "there is no information to provide."

If He’s ousting is true, it marks the first time in over 30 years that a high-ranking current military leader is being investigated since then-vice chairman Zhao Ziyang was ousted during the 1989 Tiananmen incident for supporting the students' pro-democracy movement.

There are analyses that Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign targeting the military is gaining momentum again. Neil Thomas, a specialist in Chinese politics at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), noted that "the fact that Xi can purge the vice chairman of the Central Military Commission shows how serious he is about eradicating corruption within the military," adding that "the People's Liberation Army plays a fundamental role in ensuring the party's dominance within China, which is especially important in a time of increased uncertainty due to economic shocks from the U.S.-China trade war."