The Chinese leader replaced the two most-senior leaders in the People’s Liberation Army’s Rocket Force, a state media report showed, bringing in new blood from China’s air force and navy — a highly unusual step that suggests a desire for a sweeping change in the unit’s upper echelons.
Wang Houbin, previously deputy commander of the navy, is now commander of the rocket force with the rank of general, according to an official Xinhua News Agency report on Monday. Xu Xisheng is now the rocket force’s political commissar, the report said. He previously served in the air force’s Southern Theater Command. MIT expert M Taylor Fravel noted it was the first time in 40 years that the top role went to someone from outside the rocket unit: “The appointment of an outsider often occurs when there is serious concerns about the department’s management.”
Until recently, Li Yuchao was commander of the rocket force. He is now reportedly under investigation for disciplinary violations, along with two of his deputies. The 60-year-old had only been in the job for 16 months. If confirmed, the probes would deal a blow to Xi’s signature campaign to clean up the PLA, an effort which has spanned nearly his entire tenure.
The abrupt changes come as Xi faces other senior personnel issues: last week, his handpicked foreign minister, Qin Gang, was removed from that post. The rocket unit played a key role in Beijing’s live-fire military drills around Taiwan last August, after then-US Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the self-ruled island that China claims as its territory. China had fired 11 ballistic missiles.