Appointed seven months ago to this post, Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu has been “removed” from his position, state television CCTV announced on Tuesday, October 24, tersely quoting a decision of the standing committee of the National People’s Assembly. The channel gave no reason for this dismissal and did not put forward any name for his successor.

The minister’s last public appearance was on August 29. Before that, Li Shangfu had visited Russia and Belarus a few weeks earlier, in mid-August. At the beginning of September, the American ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, declared on social networks that the minister had “not been seen or heard from in two weeks”.

According to three American officials, quoted anonymously by the British business daily Financial Times, Li Shangfu is the subject of an investigation by the authorities. Questioned by Agence France-Presse, a spokesperson for Chinese diplomacy, who speaks daily to the press, claimed “not to be aware” of the situation.

This dismissal of the defense minister comes after a reshuffle at the head of the Chinese army unit in charge of strategic missiles, particularly nuclear ones. In July, China announced that it would provide this unit with new management without justifying this change, while the media reported a corruption investigation involving its former head, who had not been seen in public for weeks.

Confirmation of Qin Gang’s dismissal

China has also formalized the “dismissal” of Qin Gang, its former foreign minister. Considered close to President Xi Jinping, he is no longer part of the State Council, the equivalent of the Chinese government, CCTV said. After an unexplained absence of a month, Qin Gang was relieved of his duties in July, a surprise decision for which the authorities gave no explanation.

He has since been replaced in this position by his predecessor, Wang Yi, who is currently the real boss of Chinese diplomacy, as the highest official of diplomatic relations within the Chinese Communist Party.

China also announced the departure of its Minister of Science and Technology, Wang Zhigang, as well as the Minister of Finance, Liu Kun. They are replaced respectively by Yin Hejun, until then secretary of the Chinese Communist Party at the Ministry of Science and Technology, and his counterpart at the Ministry of Finance, Lan Fo’an.