China’s near-term army modernization purpose may just be bogged down through its corruption scandals, a senior US defense official said on Monday.
“The substantial problems they have with corruption that have yet to be resolved certainly could slow them down on the path toward the 2027 capabilities development milestone and beyond,” the official told journalists during a press briefing.
Transcript of the briefing released Wednesday, the same day the Defense Department released its annual assessment of China’s military capabilities.
According to the Pentagon’s report, at least 15 high-ranking Chinese military officials and defense industry executives were removed from their positions between July and December 2023.
Last month, the Financial Times reported that Defense Minister Admiral Dong Jun was being investigated for corruption, the third consecutive user in the position of being investigated. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence denied the Financial Times report, calling it a “pure fabrication”.
Also last month, China’s Defense Ministry said a senior military officer, Admiral Miao Hua, had been suspended and was being investigated for “serious disciplinary violations. ” The accusation refers to corruption.
The 69-year-old oversaw political indoctrination within the People’s Liberation Army and served on the Central Military Commission. The six-person commission, chaired by Chinese leader Xi Jinping, oversees China’s armed forces.
Miao’s suspension comes just a year after the dismissal of China’s last defense minister, General Li Shangfu. Li served for seven months before being removed from office.
Li and his predecessor, Wei Fenghe, were expelled from the Chinese Communist Party for alleged corruption in June. They were also stripped of their ranks in the army.
“By 2023, a new wave of corruption-related investigations and the dismissal of senior leaders would likely have disrupted the PLA’s progress toward its stated 2027 modernization goals,” the Pentagon report says.
Earlier this year, U. S. intelligence highlighted the effects of corruption, adding water-filled missiles and ICBM silos with faulty lids that could derail a missile launch.
U. S. intelligence sources told Bloomberg in January that corruption was so serious within China’s Rocket Force and the PLA more broadly that it would likely force Xi to recalibrate whether Beijing would soon take primary military action.
U. S. officials say Xi needs China to be in a position to invade Taiwan by 2027. China first announced its modernization goal in October 2020. The 2027 milestone will coincide with the 100th anniversary of the founding of the PLA.
“That’s not to say it will invade in 2027 or any other year,” said CIA leader William J. Burns, in an interview with CBS in February 2023.
Representatives for China’s defense and foreign ministries did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
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