By: JIANLI YANG – Jan 27, 2026
Today, Xi Jinping tightens his iron grip on China’s military with the shocking purge of its most senior uniformed official, Zhang Youxia. This unprecedented upheaval has swept not only Zhang, the formidable first-ranked vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), but also General Liu Zhenli, head of the military’s Joint Staff Department, into an investigation for “grave violations of discipline and law.” Reportedly, China’s Ministry of National Defense has accused Zhang for leaking to the United States information about the Chinese nuclear program.
With these removals, the once seven-member Central Military Commission — China’s supreme military decision-making body — is now effectively reduced to just two individuals: Xi Jinping himself and Zhang Shengmin, the head of the anti-graft watchdog. This move by Xi marks a seismic shift in Beijing’s power structure, consolidating unparalleled military authority in Xi’s hands at precisely the moment he has defined “unification” with Taiwan as the greatest unfinished task of national rejuvenation.
As corruption scandals in the upper ranks of the People’s Liberation Army continue to surface, many observers draw a straightforward conclusion. Corruption hollows out combat power. Purging so many top generals must create chaos in the command system and depress morale, therefore Beijing’s timeline for using force against Taiwan will be delayed. I believe the opposite is closer to the truth. The thorough purge of top generals — including the seemingly irreplaceable Zhang Youxia — does not push conflict farther away. It tightens Xi’s personal control over the gun, removes whatever moderating influence might have existed inside the top command, and elevates precisely the kind of younger, more ideological, and more risk-prone officer corps Xi is likely to rely on if he decides that the “opportunity window” for Taiwan is opening rather than closing… [Continue Reading]
Source: https://thediplomat. https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/01/with-xi-jinpings-purge-of-chinas-most-senior-uniformed-official-war-in-taiwan-may-be-a-step-closer/