A global shockwave has been triggered by an investigation launched by Chinese leader Xi Jinping against his top general, Zhang Youxia, amid indications that he leaked information regarding Beijing’s nuclear arsenal to the United States. The Chinese Ministry of Defense announced on Saturday (January 24, 2026) that Zhang Youxia, the senior of the two vice-chairmen of the powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), is being investigated for "serious violations of discipline and law," without providing further details.
However, according to sources cited by the Wall Street Journal, who were reportedly present at a briefing of top Chinese officers that same morning, Zhang is accused of sharing critical technical information about China's nuclear weapons with Washington. The same sources stated that no further details were given during the briefing regarding the scope or content of the alleged intelligence leaks.
Circles of influence
At the same time, Zhang is reportedly being investigated for attempts to create his own circles of influence within the Communist Party, specifically within the Central Military Commission—the highest military decision-making body—cultivating division within the ranks of the leadership. According to the same sources, part of the evidence against Zhang came from Gu Jun, the former general manager of China National Nuclear, the state-owned company that manages China's nuclear programs.
Gu Jun is also under investigation for violations of Communist Party rules. A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington told the Wall Street Journal that the investigation proves the party leadership is following "a full-coverage and zero-tolerance approach to fighting corruption."
General purge
Analysts estimate that the purges serve a dual purpose: first, the reform of the military, and second, ensuring absolute political loyalty to Xi Jinping, who also chairs the Central Military Commission. These actions are part of a broader anti-corruption campaign, under which more than 200,000 officials have been punished since Xi took power in 2012.
Meanwhile, another member of the Central Military Commission, Liu Zhenli, has been placed under investigation by the ruling Communist Party, as announced by the Ministry of Defense. Liu is the chief of staff of the CMC’s Joint Staff Department. Zhang Youxia joined the People’s Liberation Army in 1968 and comes from the ground forces. He has been one of the most powerful figures in the country's military leadership for years.
In October, the Communist Party expelled the other vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, He Weidong, replacing him with Zhang Shengmin. In 2024, two former Defense Ministers were also dismissed from the party due to corruption cases.
Trump’s "suspicious" move
On the international stage, the Trump administration presented a new National Defense Strategy on Friday, in which it recognizes China as a military power that, as stated, must be deterred from dominating the United States or its allies. "This does not require regime change or any other existential struggle," the strategy states. "Instead, a dignified peace is feasible, under terms favorable to Americans but also acceptable to China."
A decade of terror
The Chinese military has been a primary target of the extensive anti-corruption campaign ordered by Xi Jinping in 2012. The campaign reached the highest echelons of the People’s Liberation Army in 2023, when the elite Rocket Force was targeted.
The removal of Zhang marks the second instance of an active Central Military Commission general being ousted from his position since the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). He has not appeared in public since November 20, when he held talks in Moscow with the Russian Defense Minister. Foreign diplomats and security analysts are closely monitoring developments, given Zhang’s close relationship with Xi, as well as the CMC's critical role in both military command and the ongoing modernization and strategic stance of the Chinese military.
War preparations
Although China has not been involved in a war for decades, it follows an increasingly aggressive line in the East and South China Seas, as well as toward self-governing Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory. Late last year, Beijing conducted the largest military exercises ever held around Taiwan.
James Char, a Chinese security expert based in Singapore, stated that daily military operations can continue normally despite the purges; however, the targeting of Zhang shows that Xi is responding to criticisms that the anti-corruption campaign has been selective until now. "Xi is filling the gaps with second-line PLA officers, mainly on a temporary basis," said Char, a researcher at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
"The modernizers of the Chinese military will continue to push for the two goals Xi has set for the PLA: that by 2035 military modernization will be essentially completed and by 2049 it will be transformed into a world-class armed force."
Who is Zhang
Zhang is the second CMC vice-chairman to lose his position in recent months. Former vice-chairman He Weidong was expelled from the party and the PLA in October of last year due to corruption and was replaced by Zhang Shengmin. In October 2025, eight top generals were expelled from the Communist Party on corruption charges, including He Weidong.
At the same time, two former Defense Ministers have been removed from the ruling party in recent years for similar cases. This campaign has slowed the procurement of advanced weapon systems and has hit the revenues of some of China’s largest defense industries. Born in Beijing, Zhang Youxia joined the army in 1968, rose steadily through the hierarchy, and joined the Central Military Commission in late 2012, at a time when the PLA modernization program was accelerating.
He took part in the brief but bloody border war with Vietnam in 1979, which China launched in response to Vietnam’s invasion of Cambodia and the overthrow of the pro-Chinese Khmer Rouge. Zhang was 26 years old when he was sent to the front line and, according to state media, was promoted quickly. He also participated in a new border conflict with Vietnam in 1984 as tensions continued. "During the battle, whether on the offensive or defensive, Zhang Youxia demonstrated exceptional performance," wrote the official publication China Youth Daily in a 2017 article titled "These Chinese generals killed the enemy on the battlefield."
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