Xi’s Rare Virtual Meeting With PLA Units Fan Speculation of Military Instability
Udumbara
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When Chinese leader Xi Jinping delivered his annual Lunar New Year speech to the armed forces via video link, analysts took note. It broke Xi’s customary practice of inspecting troops in person ahead of the country’s most important festival.
The move is the latest sign that Xi can’t trust the military’s leadership, or even fears it, China experts say, despite more than a decade of purges and power consolidation.
According to state media, Xi inspected the military’s combat readiness and mission execution via video link at the Bayi Building in central Beijing on Feb. 10.
Footage aired by state broadcaster CCTV on Feb. 11 showed three tables placed in the center of a spacious room, with Xi sitting at the middle table, facing a large screen. Flanking him were newly appointed Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Shengmin and Defense Minister Dong Jun.
Since coming to power in late 2012, Xi has used the Lunar New Year to inspect military units, shaking hands with officers and posing for photographs that are often republished by state-affiliated media outlets nationwide. Even amid the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, he inspected troops stationed in southwestern China.
The only exception was in 2023, when Xi remained in Beijing and relied entirely on videoconferencing to meet with military units. State media footage at the time showed Xi accompanied by six generals of the Central Military Commission, which commands the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Now, five of the six men at the country’s elite military body have effectively been removed.
“The purge of Zhang Youxia has likely sent shockwaves through the entire military,” China expert Wang He told The Epoch Times. “The instability within the military might be Xi Jinping’s greatest fear.”
Xi’s decision to avoid in-person troop visits may have been linked to his heightened fear and caution regarding unexpected events that could arise during face-to-face meetings with senior commanders, according to Wang.
“Xi is extremely suspicious and worried that uprisings or assassination attempts could happen to him anywhere,” said Wang, who is also a contributor to The Epoch Times. “So he adopts the ’turtle strategy'—staying hidden and not taking risks.”
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Shen Ming-shih, a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, a Taiwan-based think tank, echoed the sentiment.
“The downfall of Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli will affect military morale, but Xi Jinping may also fear that visiting troops in person could expose him to risks, such as a coup or even assassination. This may explain why he switched to sending New Year greetings via video link,” Shen told The Epoch Times.
Aside from the ongoing political purges, Xi’s health may also have played a major role in avoiding in-person troop inspections, Wang said.
‘Guarding Against the Military’
The CCP’s political system is known for its opacity, but the military is even more secretive, particularly amid a renewed purge of the defense establishment that has raised questions about the PLA’s combat readiness.The relentless political cleansing of the PLA leadership came as China heads for the twice-a-decade Party Congress in 2027, the country’s most important political event.
Shen, a Taiwanese expert on the PLA and China’s politics, said that by removing Zhang—who is second only to the CCP leader—Xi might have made up his mind to seek a fourth five-year term at next year’s Party congress, instead of appointing a successor.
That means the turmoil within the military’s upper ranks is likely to continue, according to Ai Shicheng, a former Chinese magazine editor.
“To secure another term, Xi must clear the field within the military,” removing any commanders deemed not fully loyal to him or posing future threats, Ai told The Epoch Times.
“Xi Jinping’s way of managing the PLA has shifted from controlling the military to guarding against the military.”
