A relatively more graceful exit, preserving the appearance of voluntary departure
At the close of China's third plenum, the Communist Party formalized the political fates of several senior officials caught in Xi Jinping's long-running anti-corruption campaign — a campaign now in its second decade and still reshaping the upper echelons of both civilian and military power. The expulsion of a former defence minister and a former Rocket Force commander, alongside the quieter resignation of a once-rising foreign minister, reveals the careful gradations of disgrace that Beijing employs to manage accountability without inviting scrutiny of its own inner workings. Whether this represents a genuine reckoning with institutional corruption or a selective instrument of political consolidation remains, as it has for years, an open question.
- Xi Jinping's anti-corruption machine is running at its highest recorded pace — 36 vice-ministerial officials investigated in the first half of 2024 alone, with two defence ministers and nine generals now caught in its net.
- The expulsions of Li Shangfu and Li Yuchao carry the party's harshest formal language — 'serious violations of discipline and law' — signalling that commanders of China's nuclear arsenal were not beyond reach.
- Qin Gang's case cuts differently: a former foreign minister who vanished from public life amid rumour and silence was allowed to 'resign' rather than be expelled, a distinction analysts read as Xi protecting his own reputation by association.
- A Rocket Force deputy political commissar was conspicuously skipped in Central Committee appointments, suggesting the military purge has left institutional trust so fractured that even routine promotions carry political risk.
- Critics note the campaign's paradox — after more than a decade, senior officials are still being ensnared, raising the question of whether the drive is curing corruption or simply cycling through it.
China's Communist Party closed its third plenum with personnel decisions that laid bare both the reach and the limits of Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign. The party accepted the resignation of former foreign minister Qin Gang from the Central Committee and formally expelled former defence minister Li Shangfu and ex-Rocket Force commander Li Yuchao from the party entirely — formalizing removals that had already stripped them of their posts the previous year.
The distinction in treatment was deliberate. Qin, 58, whose swift rise to become one of China's youngest foreign ministers was widely attributed to his closeness to Xi, was allowed to resign rather than face expulsion — preserving his party membership and a semblance of dignity. Analysts noted that Xi's political fortunes were bound up with Qin's reputation, making a quieter exit the more convenient resolution. No official explanation was offered for his departure.
Li Shangfu, 66, and Li Yuchao, 61, faced harsher consequences. Li Shangfu had been removed as defence minister without public explanation before being placed under investigation for graft; his full expulsion from the party was announced at the plenum. Li Yuchao, who had overseen China's conventional and nuclear missile forces as Rocket Force commander, was expelled alongside him. Their cases are part of a broader military purge that has now claimed two defence ministers and nine senior generals.
The campaign's pace has intensified in 2024. The party's top graft watchdog investigated 36 officials at the vice-ministerial level or above in the first half of the year alone, and Li Shangfu's predecessor Wei Fenghe was expelled on bribery charges just weeks before the plenum. Three alternate Central Committee members were elevated to full membership, though a Rocket Force official who would have ranked second by vote count was passed over — a signal, analysts suggested, of lingering unease around military appointments.
Yet the campaign's selectivity invites scrutiny. Agriculture minister Tang Renjian, under investigation since May, retained his Central Committee seat. And after more than a decade of anti-corruption drives, senior officials continue to fall — prompting some analysts to question whether the campaign is dismantling a culture of graft or simply managing it.
China's Communist Party concluded its third plenum on Thursday with a pair of personnel decisions that underscored the continuing reach of President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign: the party accepted the resignation of former foreign minister Qin Gang from its Central Committee and formally expelled former defence minister Li Shangfu, along with ex-Rocket Force commander Li Yuchao, from the party itself.
The plenum, held roughly once every five years by the 205-member Central Committee, serves as the party's primary venue for mapping out long-term policy direction and approving major personnel changes. Both Qin and Li Shangfu had already been removed from their ministerial posts the previous year, but Thursday's action formalized their departure from the party's highest decision-making body. The distinction between the two outcomes matters: Qin's resignation allowed him to retain party membership and a measure of dignity, while Li Shangfu and Li Yuchao faced the harsher penalty of expulsion, with the official language citing "serious violations of discipline and law"—the standard euphemism for corruption.
Qin Gang, 58, had enjoyed a meteoric rise in the foreign service, becoming one of China's youngest foreign ministers when appointed in December 2022. Analysts attributed his rapid ascent partly to his perceived closeness to Xi. But in July 2023, after just seven months in the role, he was abruptly removed from the position. He vanished from public view amid rumours of an extramarital affair, was stripped from the State Council in October, and formally resigned from the national legislature in February. The party's communique offered no official explanation for his resignation from the Central Committee. One analyst at the Atlantic Council's Global China Hub noted that Qin and Xi's political fortunes were intertwined—any public damage to Qin would reflect poorly on the president—and that the resignation framing allowed Qin "a relatively more graceful exit," preserving the appearance of voluntary departure while still addressing the underlying problem.
Li Shangfu, 66, faced a steeper descent. Removed as defence minister in October without public explanation, he was subsequently placed under investigation for graft and stripped from the party's highest military command body in February. His expulsion from the Communist Party itself, announced Thursday, represents a more severe political consequence. Li Yuchao, 61, who had commanded the Rocket Force—the PLA unit responsible for China's conventional and nuclear missile arsenal—was similarly expelled. He had been replaced in his post the previous July during a broader leadership shakeup that also removed the Rocket Force's political commissar.
These removals are part of a larger military purge that has ensnared two defence ministers and nine senior generals on corruption charges. The broader anti-corruption campaign, which Xi has championed since becoming party leader in 2012, has accelerated in recent months. In the first half of 2024 alone, the party's top graft watchdog investigated 36 officials at the vice-ministerial level and above. Last month, Li Shangfu's predecessor, Wei Fenghe, was also expelled from the party on bribery charges.
The plenum also appointed three alternate Central Committee members to full membership: Anhui's Communist Party personnel chief Ding Xiangqun, Sichuan's Communist Party personnel chief Yu Lijun, and Beijing Normal University President Yu Jihong. Notably, the appointments skipped over PLA Rocket Force deputy political commissar Ding Xingnong, who would have been second in line by vote count—a decision that may reflect continued sensitivity around military appointments. The communique also announced the expulsion of former Rocket Force chief of staff Lieutenant General Sun Jinming for corruption.
Analysts remain divided on what the campaign signals. Some view it as evidence of Xi's sustained commitment to rooting out graft at the highest levels. Others question its effectiveness, noting that more than a decade into the anti-corruption drive, senior officials continue to be ensnared in corruption investigations. Agriculture minister Tang Renjian, 61, who has been under investigation since May, retained his Central Committee seat, suggesting the purge remains selective and incomplete. Only 199 of the Central Committee's full members and 165 of its 171 alternates attended the plenum, according to the communique.
Citas Notables
Qin and Xi's images are somewhat tied—there is no way to make Qin look bad without making Xi look bad— Wen-Ti Sung, Atlantic Council's Global China Hub
One could see the dismissals as a sign of the continued vigour of Xi's anti-corruption campaign—or its sub-optimal effectiveness at preventing corruption even after more than a decade— Wen-Ti Sung, Atlantic Council's Global China Hub
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why did Qin Gang get to resign while Li Shangfu was expelled? They both lost their jobs.
The difference is about political protection and optics. Qin was close to Xi, so a public expulsion would have reflected badly on the president. A resignation lets him keep party membership and saves face for both men.
So Xi is shielding him?
Not shielding exactly—more like managing the damage. Qin is still out of power, still disgraced. But the form matters in Chinese politics. The communique calls him a "comrade," which is a courtesy Li Shangfu didn't receive.
And Li Shangfu's expulsion is harsher because he has no such connection?
Precisely. He was defence minister, a powerful position, but he didn't have the same relationship with Xi that Qin did. So when corruption allegations surfaced, there was no political cost to making an example of him.
Does this campaign actually work? Has corruption decreased?
That's the open question. In the first half of this year alone, they investigated 36 high-level officials. But the fact that they keep finding corruption suggests either the problem is endemic or the campaign isn't preventing it—maybe both.
What about the military specifically?
The military purge is particularly aggressive. Two defence ministers and nine generals in recent years. The Rocket Force, which controls nuclear missiles, has been hit especially hard. That suggests Xi sees military corruption as a genuine threat to control and stability.