 "China's probe into Defence Minister Dong Jun unravels 'deeply rooted' corruption within PLA")
The fate of China’s Defence Minister Dong Jun remains unclear after reports emerged that he is being investigated for corruption. The Financial Times first reported that Dong was placed under investigation as part of a wide-ranging anti-corruption probe that has reached the top ranks of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). A US official, on condition of anonymity, gave an insight into the investigation.
He told Reuters that a Chinese investigation into its strategic rocket forces had spilled over to other issues in the military and procurement. The official mentioned that the investigation into Dong’s business is significant because he was appointed to the post by Chinese President Xi Jinping himself.
With this, Dong became the third consecutive serving or former Chinese defence minister to be investigated for alleged corruption, indicating the problems within the Xi administration. Amid the chaos, when asked about media reports, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said it was “chasing shadows”. Meanwhile, the Chinese Defence Ministry did not comment on the matter.
China struggles to fight corruption
It is pertinent to note China’s military has undergone a sweeping anti-corruption purge since 2023. At least nine PLA generals and a handful of defence industry executives have been removed from the national legislative body to date. Dong, who has served as the former PLA Navy chief, was appointed as the country’s defence minister in December last year.
His predecessor, Li Shangfu, was removed after seven months into the job. Interestingly, the investigation is also coming to light a week after Dong declined to meet US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin during a meeting of defence ministers in Laos. At that time, the Chinese Defence Ministry cited US actions over Taiwan, a move the Pentagon chief said on Nov. 27 was unfortunate.
Amid the chaos, the US officials maintained that they were not concerned about military-to-military relations between Washington and Beijing if Dong was removed. They told Reuters that China would be able to quickly put a successor in place, in case of such an event.
Impact Shorts
View AllIt is important to note that Dong oversaw a recent thaw in US-China military-to-military ties, with both nations holding theatre-level commander talks in September for the first time. Dong’s two immediate predecessors, Li and Wei Fenghe, were expelled from the Communist Party for “serious violations of discipline”, a euphemism for corruption.
At that time, a communist party statement said that the pair “betrayed the trust of the party and the Central Military Commission, seriously polluted the political environment of the military and caused great damage to… the image of its senior leaders”.
With inputs from agencies.
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