China promotes sole remaining general to top party body

Chinese Communist Party leaders promoted the army's highest-ranking officer to its most powerful governing body on Thursday. The decision places Gen. Zhang Shengmin on the Politburo, the central decision-making unit of the party. He is the only general currently serving on the Central Military Commission. This body oversees the nation's armed forces.

Xi Jinping previously removed two senior generals from their posts. Those removals left Zhang as the sole military representative on the commission besides the president. The purge also left the Politburo without any active members from the People's Liberation Army. Zhang holds a dual role that includes oversight of internal military discipline. He serves as deputy secretary of the CMC Commission for Discipline Inspection.

The top leaders concluded a four-day closed-door session in Bangkok. During this meeting, they passed resolutions designed to guide the party for the coming years. One key resolution focused on strengthening self-governance and anti-corruption efforts. The party stated that its current tasks are increasingly difficult. It cited the need to unite the public to protect national sovereignty and security.

The resolution emphasizes the need for ideological purity and close ties with the public. Xinhua News Agency reported that the party must maintain its progressive nature to enhance long-term governance capacity. The document calls for rooting out corruption within the organization. This effort extends Xi's anti-corruption campaign, which he has led since taking power in 2012. Analysts note that the crackdown now also targets underperforming officials.

Party members reviewed the recent removals of top officials and military leaders. They formally confirmed these personnel changes during the plenum. Neil Thomas, a senior fellow at Asia Policy, analyzed the attendance figures for the meeting. He calculated an attendance rate of 74 percent among the delegates. This is the lowest rate recorded since the era of former leader Mao Zedong. Thomas described the purges as wider than expected.

The meeting comes approximately one year before President Xi Jinping is expected to secure a fourth five-year term. The resolutions adopted during this session will shape the party's internal structure and external policy. The promotion of Zhang Shengmin restores military representation to the Politburo. The new disciplinary rules aim to tighten control over party members at all levels.