China's Military Shake-Up: Senior CMC Figure Gen. Zhang Youxia in Focus
Gen. Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of China's Central Military Commission, is at the centre of a widening military purge that has reached the PLA's top ranks.
A fresh round of turbulence has struck the upper echelons of China's armed forces, with Gen. Zhang Youxia, a vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, emerging as a focal point of the widening purge.
The development places scrutiny squarely on one of the most senior figures in the People's Liberation Army's command structure. The Central Military Commission sits at the apex of China's military decision-making, and a vice chairman is among the handful of officials who shape the country's defence policy at the highest level.
Gen. Zhang has been a familiar presence at major state occasions. He was photographed attending the opening session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in March 2025, seated among the leadership during one of the country's most closely watched political gatherings.
The purge has unfolded against the backdrop of China's broader political calendar, which has seen President Xi Jinping engage with foreign leaders in Beijing, including a meeting with Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the Great Hall of the People.
The removal or investigation of senior military figures carries significance beyond the barracks. The PLA is central to Beijing's strategic ambitions, and turnover at the top can ripple through procurement, operational planning and the chain of command.
Details of the proceedings remain tightly held, consistent with the secrecy that typically surrounds disciplinary action within China's military leadership. What is clear is that the shake-up has now reached the innermost circle of the country's defence establishment.