In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency on Thursday, October 23, 2025, Chinese President Xi Jinping leads other members of the Politburo standing committee during the fourth plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee in Beijing.
| Photo Credit: AP
The elite Central Committee of China’s ruling Communist Party replaced 11 members at a key meeting, Xinhua reported on Thursday, its highest personnel turnover since 2017 amid an ongoing military corruption purge.
Veteran Chinese general Zhang Shengmin, 67, was promoted to second-ranked vice chair of the powerful Central Military Commission, Xinhua said, quoting a party statement.
The statement was released on the last day of a key closed-door meeting of the 300-plus member body in Beijing known as the Fourth Plenum, which also discussed a five-year economic development plan to achieve technological self-reliance amid an intensifying rivalry with the United States.
Mr. Zhang, who currently serves on the Central Military Commission, replaces He Weidong, the former second-ranked vice chair who was expelled from the Communist Party last week on corruption charges along with eight other People’s Liberation Army generals.
Published – October 23, 2025 10:58 pm IST
