Xi Jinping promotes military loyalist during CCP fifth plenum

During the Chinese Communist Party’s fifth plenum in Beijing, General Zhang Shengmin was promoted to the Politburo. Zhang serves as a key anti-corruption enforcer within the military and is one of only two remaining members of the Central Military Commission alongside Xi Jinping.

This promotion follows a period of significant leadership turnover within the People’s Liberation Army, during which Xi Jinping purged five other generals previously hand-picked for the commission. Since 2012, Xi’s anti-corruption campaign has resulted in the removal or investigation of hundreds of senior and lower-ranked officials to address corruption and disloyalty.

Zhang’s elevation marks the first time in decades that the party has restocked the Politburo in the middle of a five-year term. These leadership shifts occur as Xi Jinping prepares for a potential fourth term at the 21st Party Congress, scheduled for the second half of next year.