In a dramatic overhaul of top leadership, China withdrew defence minister Li Shangfu and ex-foreign minister Qin Gang from the cabinet on Tuesday, according to state media.
The announcement follows months of uncertainty about the country’s cabinet, including consternation over Qin’s unexpected exit from office in July without explanation and Li’s months-long disappearance from public view.
Experts believe that President Xi Jinping personally chose both Qin and Li for their jobs.
CCTV revealed the withdrawals in its normal evening bulletin on Tuesday, but provided no explanation for the ministers’ demotion.
No replacement for Li as defence minister was announced.
Previously, it was claimed that the US administration believed Li was being investigated and had been deprived of his ministerial duties, but China refused to comment.
On August 15, Li traveled to Russia to attend a security conference near Moscow. Two days later, the Belarusian government released photos of Li meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk.
But since then, he has vanished from public view.
With Li’s departure now confirmed, there is no clear host for China’s regional security discussion, the Xiangshan Forum, next week, which is expected to be attended by representatives from the US Department of Defense.
Xi’s ‘unparalleled’ power
According to experts, Tuesday’s announcement exacerbated the ongoing uncertainty surrounding China’s top leadership.
The recent upheaval, according to Neil Thomas, Chinese politics fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute, “hints at severe deficiencies in the vetting process for top officials at the 20th Party Congress last year, possibly due to lower-level officials not wanting to push back against Xi’s preferred candidates.”
But the removal of Li and Qin is “unlikely to significantly undermine (Xi’s) political authority, as neither was part of his true inner circle”, Thomas said.
“Their purge reinforces to other officials the importance of retaining Xi’s favour.”
Li has lost his position on China’s State Council as well as his role as Defence Minister.
Former Foreign Minister Qin has been stripped of his cabinet position after being ousted from office by Beijing’s highest legislative body after only 207 days in office.
Wang Yi, a senior diplomat who served as foreign minister before Qin and outranked him in the Chinese official hierarchy, took his place.
Xi’s “willingness to correct course despite the optics suggest he is confident that such decisions do not have major repercussions,” Yun Sun, senior fellow and director of the China Program at the Stimson Center in Washington, told AFP, adding that “Xi’s control and power are unparalleled”.
Any possible investigation into Li is “likely to continue for a while and we will not know the true reason for a long time,” Sun said.
Black box
That opacity was also visible when China recently announced a new leadership for its Rocket Force, the army unit in charge of the country’s nuclear arsenal, while media reported a corruption investigation involving its prior commander.
Wang Houbin, the navy’s former deputy commander, was designated the force’s new leader in a brief piece by state news agency Xinhua proclaiming his promotion to the rank of general.
Li Yuchao, his predecessor, had not been seen in public for weeks, and Xinhua provided no explanation for his ouster.
On Tuesday, CCTV also announced the resignations of Science and Technology Minister Wang Zhigang and Finance Minister Liu Kun.
Current Ministry of Science and Technology Party Secretary Yin Hejun and Finance Ministry Party Secretary Lan Fo’an will take their places.
According to Adam Ni, founder of the China Neican newsletter, the dismissals demonstrated “elite politics at work.”
“Leadership instability continues unabated despite the cementing of paramount power by Xi,” he said, adding “all those below Xi with the exception of very few are subjected to quick falls from power”.
“They can be picked and they can be discarded,” Ni said.