Xi’s Grip on China’s Military Falters Amid Sweeping Purge: Analysts

The dismissal of top generals and a constrained promotion reveal cracks in Xi Jinping’s control over the armed forces and the Party itself, analysts say.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping (R) receives a military salute before inspecting the troops during a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II, on Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Sept. 3, 2025. Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images

When the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) concluded the Fourth Plenum of its 20th Central Committee on Oct. 23, state media portrayed it as a routine policy meeting that approved the 15th Five-Year Plan. But behind the propaganda, an unprecedented purge was unfolding within China’s military leadership.

Prior to the plenum, nine military leaders, each personally promoted by CCP leader Xi Jinping, were dismissed on the same day, an extraordinary event even by the CCP’s opaque standards.