Xi Jinping's Purge and What Trump's Foreign Policy Means for China

"Last month, he put Zhang Youxia, then the top-ranking official in the People's Liberation Army, under investigation for "grave violations of discipline and law." Xi has long warned of widespread corruption within the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and P.L.A., and has correspondingly purged many of his onetime political and military colleagues, even when, like General Zhang, they were considered to be his allies or confidants."

"Over the past few years, the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, has removed dozens of senior military officials from their roles. In doing so, he has strengthened his position within the C.C.P., where he is considered the most powerful leader since Mao Zedong. But his latest move has raised questions about what exactly he is trying to achieve within the C.C.P., and whether his military shakeup is a prelude to a move against Taiwan."

"I was living in China between 2005 and 2015. I was there for the Hu Jintao era, and then the first three years of the Xi Jinping era. In the last few years of the Hu era, which ended in 2012, corruption was out of control, and you really got the sense that things could continue to spiral in ways that were pretty dangerous. So to understand Xi's anti-corruption drive,"

Xi Jinping has removed dozens of senior military officials and placed Zhang Youxia under investigation for "grave violations of discipline and law." The purges are framed as an anti-corruption campaign that has targeted onetime allies and confidants, strengthening Xi's position within the Chinese Communist Party and elevating him as the most powerful leader since Mao. The military shakeup raises concerns about whether the moves could be a prelude to action against Taiwan. Observers who lived in China during the Hu Jintao era note that corruption had been spiraling, and that Xi's campaign seeks to rein in corruption while consolidating political and military control.

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