China has removed two of its most senior military officers, Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, from the country’s top military command body after both generals were placed under investigation earlier this year for suspected “serious violations of discipline and law.”
The move, announced on August 28, marks a dramatic escalation in President Xi Jinping’s long-running campaign to reshape and tighten control over the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Zhang was the highest-ranking uniformed officer under Xi and a vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), while Liu served as a CMC member and chief of its Joint Staff Department.
The significance goes beyond the careers of two generals. Their removal leaves the state CMC with only two known active members, Xi Jinping and vice chairman Zhang Shengmin, according to Reuters and other reports.
So who are Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, and why does their downfall matter?
What happened to Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli?
China’s National People’s Congress Standing Committee formally removed Zhang from his position as vice chairman of the state Central Military Commission and Liu from his CMC membership on Friday, August 28.
The decision came roughly seven months after China’s Ministry of National Defense announced that the two men were being investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline and law. Chinese authorities frequently use that formulation in cases involving alleged corruption or other serious misconduct, although Beijing has not publicly disclosed the specific allegations against either officer.
The latest decision concerns their positions in the state CMC. China maintains parallel Communist Party and state CMC structures, although in practice they function as a single military command system under Xi, who chairs both. Reuters reported that it remains unclear whether Zhang and Liu have also been formally removed from their positions in the Communist Party’s CMC.
Their whereabouts have not been publicly disclosed.
The timing is particularly striking because Zhang was not simply another senior officer. He was effectively the No. 2 military figure in China.
Who is Zhang Youxia?
Zhang Youxia is a veteran Chinese general who rose through the PLA over several decades before becoming one of the most powerful figures in China’s military establishment.
Born in Beijing in 1950, Zhang joined the PLA in 1968. He participated in the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War and later fought during the 1984 Battle of Laoshan along the China-Vietnam border. That combat experience distinguished him from many senior Chinese commanders whose careers were built primarily around administration and military modernization.
Zhang also came from a prominent military family. His father, Zhang Zongxun, was a senior Chinese general and veteran of the Chinese Civil War and the Korean War.
Zhang’s own rise accelerated after he took command of the PLA’s 13th Group Army in 2000. He later became vice commander of the Beijing Military Region and, in 2007, commander of the Shenyang Military Region.
In 2007, he also entered the Communist Party’s Central Committee, putting him firmly inside China’s senior political and military leadership.
How did Zhang become China’s No. 2 military officer?
Zhang joined the Central Military Commission in 2012 and became a member of the Communist Party’s Politburo in 2017. That same year, he was appointed CMC vice chairman.
After Xi secured an unprecedented third term as Communist Party leader in 2022, Zhang remained in the CMC and became its senior vice chairman. His position made him the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the Chinese military after Xi.
Zhang was also closely associated with China’s military modernization. Before becoming vice chairman, he headed the PLA’s General Armaments Department and later the CMC’s Equipment Development Department, giving him influence over weapons procurement, military technology and equipment development.
His long-standing relationship with Xi made his eventual investigation particularly significant.
Xi’s anti-corruption campaign has already removed numerous senior military officials. But Zhang had appeared unusually secure because of his seniority, combat experience and perceived political proximity to Xi.
That changed in January 2026.
Why was Zhang Youxia investigated?
On January 24, China’s Ministry of National Defense announced that Zhang and Liu were being investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline and law. The investigation was described as a decision of the Communist Party’s Central Committee.
The announcement was extraordinary because Zhang was the most senior military figure to be targeted in the latest phase of Xi’s military purge.
Chinese authorities have not publicly provided a detailed account of the alleged misconduct. Reports have therefore focused on the broader anti-corruption campaign inside the PLA rather than assigning specific wrongdoing to Zhang or Liu without evidence.
The PLA Daily subsequently published commentary saying the two officers had undermined the party’s control over the military and the authority of the CMC chairman, according to reporting by the South China Morning Post.
A key point for readers is that an investigation and removal from office do not, by themselves, establish criminal guilt. Any specific allegations should be attributed to Chinese authorities until formal findings are released.
Who is Liu Zhenli?
Liu Zhenli is another veteran PLA commander with extensive experience in China’s ground forces.
Born in 1964, Liu joined the PLA in 1983 and became a member of the Communist Party the following year. Like Zhang, he had combat experience from China’s prolonged border conflict with Vietnam.
Liu rose through the army’s operational command structure, becoming chief of staff of the 65th Group Army in 2009 and commander of the formation in 2012. He subsequently commanded the 38th Group Army, one of the PLA’s major ground formations.
His career then shifted toward increasingly senior positions in the reorganized Chinese military.
In 2015, Liu became chief of staff of the People’s Armed Police before transferring to the newly reorganized PLA Ground Force, where he became its first chief of staff.
He was promoted to commander of the PLA Ground Force in 2021.
What was Liu Zhenli’s role in the CMC?
Liu became chief of staff of the CMC’s Joint Staff Department in September 2022.
The position was strategically important because the Joint Staff Department is responsible for functions connected to military operations and combat planning. Liu therefore occupied a role at the center of China’s military command structure rather than serving solely as a field commander.
His removal alongside Zhang is significant because the two men represented different but complementary parts of the PLA hierarchy.
Zhang was the senior political and strategic military leader immediately below Xi, while Liu held a key operational command position.
Why does the removal of Zhang and Liu matter?
The purge matters for several reasons.
First, it reaches the highest levels of China’s military leadership.
Removing a senior CMC vice chairman is considerably different from dismissing a lower-ranking commander. Zhang was one of the few people with direct access to the top of China’s military decision-making system.
Second, the move highlights the depth of Xi’s anti-corruption campaign.
Since Xi came to power in 2012, corruption investigations have reached deep into the PLA. The campaign intensified sharply in recent years, including investigations involving senior officers connected to the Rocket Force and military procurement.
Zhang’s case demonstrates that seniority or proximity to Xi does not necessarily guarantee protection.
Third, the removals create an unusual leadership gap.
The CMC was designed as a seven-member body under the current structure. Following the latest removals, only Xi and vice chairman Zhang Shengmin are known to remain among its active members, according to Reuters and the Japan Times.
That does not mean China’s military has suddenly lost its ability to operate. The PLA has a vast command structure beneath the CMC, with theater commands, service branches and operational commanders capable of continuing day-to-day military activities.
But the unusually small number of publicly known CMC members underscores the scale of the leadership shake-up.
What does this mean for Xi Jinping?
The removal of Zhang is particularly important for Xi because it affects one of the most senior officers in the military hierarchy.
Xi has repeatedly emphasised the Communist Party’s absolute control over the PLA. The CMC chairman responsibility system places Xi at the center of military decision-making.
The January investigation announcement, followed by the formal removal of Zhang and Liu, reinforces that structure.
It also sends a message throughout the PLA: senior rank is not a shield against investigation when party discipline and loyalty to the CMC chairman are at stake.
At the same time, it would be premature to conclude that the removals necessarily indicate an imminent crisis in China’s military command. Beijing has provided limited public information about the allegations, and the long-term consequences will depend partly on who is appointed to replace the two officers and whether further investigations follow.
What happens next?
Several developments will be worth watching.
Who replaces Zhang Youxia?
The most immediate question is who will fill the senior vice chairman position and whether the replacement will come from the current military leadership or represent a broader restructuring.
The appointment could provide clues about Xi’s priorities, particularly whether the next leadership team emphasizes political loyalty, operational experience, military modernization or a combination of the three.
Will more senior officers be removed?
Zhang and Liu are not the only senior military figures affected by the latest purge.
China also removed other former senior officials from political positions, including former CMC General Office director Zhong Shaojun and former Strategic Support Force commander Ju Qiansheng, according to Caixin.
The broader pattern suggests that the campaign has not yet run its course.
Will Beijing disclose the allegations?
This may be the most important unanswered question.
China has not publicly detailed what Zhang and Liu allegedly did. If formal disciplinary or legal findings are released, they could reveal whether the cases primarily concern corruption, military procurement, abuse of authority or other violations.
Until then, claims about a specific conspiracy or political motive should be treated as speculation rather than fact.
The bottom line
Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli were not ordinary PLA commanders. Zhang was China’s senior-most uniformed military officer under Xi, a Politburo member and CMC vice chairman. Liu was a senior ground-force commander who became chief of staff of the CMC’s Joint Staff Department.
Their investigations in January were already extraordinary. Their formal removal from the state CMC in August takes the episode further.
The immediate impact is a major reshuffling at the top of China’s military establishment. The broader significance lies in what the episode says about Xi Jinping’s control of the PLA and the continuing reach of his anti-corruption campaign.
For now, the most important facts are clear: both generals have lost their positions in the state CMC, Beijing has accused them of suspected serious violations of discipline and law, and Chinese authorities have yet to publicly provide a detailed account of the allegations.
