In the latest indication that Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign has reached the highest echelons of the military, a senior Chinese general has been dismissed from the body that oversees the Chinese military. Miao Hua, a prominent admiral from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) navy and the director of the political work department of the central military commission (CMC), has been removed from his position for “serious violations of discipline,” a term commonly used to describe corruption. This dismissal makes Miao one of the highest-ranking CMC officials to be purged since the 1960s, marking a significant escalation in Xi’s crackdown on corruption within the armed forces. Earlier this year, Miao was suspended and placed under investigation before being expelled from the National People’s Congress, China’s parliament, in April.
The CMC, one of the most powerful institutions in China and headed by Xi himself, plays a crucial role in determining the ideology and loyalty within the military. The dismissal of Miao adds to the recent spate of high-profile purges within the Chinese military, with He Weidong, a vice-chair of the CMC, also under investigation. This series of dismissals reflects the broader instability within China’s armed forces and could potentially disrupt the image of strength and stability that Beijing is keen to project globally, especially at a time when the world’s attention is focused on conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine.
The US-China military dialogue, crucial for avoiding accidental conflicts, especially in the Taiwan Strait, has been limited under the presidency of Donald Trump, who has also dismissed several senior military officials. The regular Shangri-la Dialogue, where US and Chinese defense ministers typically meet, saw a reduced Chinese delegation this year, highlighting the strained relations between the two nations.
In the past two years, Xi has dismissed two defense ministers, two heads of the PLA’s rocket force, and other senior military officials, many of whom are believed to be involved in corruption related to military procurement. Miao’s expulsion is the eighth such dismissal since Xi took power in 2012, a phenomenon previously unheard of since the era of Mao Zedong. Despite his initial pledge to root out corruption by targeting both “tigers” and “flies,” the multiplication of dismissals raises questions about Xi’s ability to vet his appointees effectively. Notably, some of Xi’s key picks, including former foreign minister Qin Gang, have fallen under the anti-corruption scrutiny, further complicating Xi’s efforts to maintain a loyal and corruption-free military leadership.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/27/top-chinese-general-miao-hua-ousted-from-body-that-oversees-china-military
