Chinese President Xi Jinping has appointed Zhang Shuguang as secretary of the Central Military Commission's (CMC) discipline inspection commission, according to state-run Xinhua News Agency. Wang Gang has been appointed as commander of the People's Liberation Army Air Force, with both men promoted to the rank of general - China's highest level for officers in active service. The appointments were made at a ceremony attended by Xi in Beijing on July 3, 2026, as part of the country's largest military purge in half a century. Zhang Shengmin, who previously served as the military's top anti-graft official, is now vice-chairman of the CMC, while it remains unclear what role former Air Force Commander Chang Dingqiu will take next.
Xi launched a sprawling campaign to root out corruption in the armed forces in mid-2023, months after securing a precedent-defying third term. Since then, he has ousted two military vice-chairmen, three CMC members, a former defence minister and at least a dozen senior generals who oversaw military commands. In perhaps the most stunning development earlier in 2026, Xi launched an investigation into his top general and one-time ally, Zhang Youxia. The campaign has also resulted in the removal of two former defense ministers who were handed suspended death sentences in May, highlighting the severity of the purge. Last week, Beijing stripped six military lawmakers of their seats in the national Parliament, demonstrating the comprehensive nature of the anti-corruption drive.
Zhang Shuguang's appointment as head of the CMC's discipline inspection commission includes his promotion to secretary, replacing Zhang Shengmin who held the post since 2017. According to state media, Zhang was also appointed head of the CMC's discipline inspection commission, the military's top anti-corruption watchdog. These promotions could position the new generals to fill upcoming vacancies on the commission, which has been depleted by corruption investigations. The appointments could position Zhang Shuguang and Wang Gang to fill vacancies on the seven-member commission, which has been reduced by the anti-corruption drive. A new commission is expected to be announced in the fall of 2027, at the end of the current commission's five-year term, providing opportunities for further leadership changes.
Following the purge of nearly the entirety of his top military command over corruption, Xi sent senior PLA officers to an intensive ten-week political retraining course earlier this year. As reported by Reuters, "All thoughts and actions of seeking private gain and corruption are fundamentally incompatible with the party's nature and purpose," Xi told the officers in April. The political retraining programme required senior officers to study Xi's writings, revisit their Communist Party oath and undertake self-examination. Describing the exercise, the PLA-run newspaper said the officers were guided to "lay bare their faults with a spirit of thorough self-revolution, and to identify and examine instances of contamination by pernicious influence and manifestations of mutation." The current CMC lineup was named in October 2022 and was originally expected to serve a five-year term. With the leadership significantly reduced following the anti-corruption drive, the latest promotions are expected to form part of a broader rebuilding of the commission ahead of the next Communist Party congress, expected in 2027, with further appointments anticipated when a new CMC is announced at the end of the current term.
