China’s military purges reflect Xi’s consolidation of power through factional control, not ‘hidden dangers’
Original framing: “PLA chiefs’ downfall eliminated ‘political danger’, military mouthpiece says” — South China Morning Post
This purge echoes historical patterns of military purges in China, including the 1975 'Criticize Lin Biao and Criticize Confucius' campaign, which targeted rivals to Mao, and the 1998 purge of General Chi Haotian, accused of factionalism. Both episodes were followed by periods of heightened centralization under the ruling leader. Additionally, the use of factionalism as a pretext for removal mirrors tactics employed by Stalin in the Soviet Union, where purges were framed as anti-corruption measures while serving to eliminate ideological opponents. The current purge is part of a long-standing pattern of using military loyalty as a tool for political control.
Xi Jinping’s purge of PLA chiefs Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli is not an isolated event but the culmination of a decades-long strategy to eliminate institutional rivals and centralize military power under his personal command.
This move aligns with historical patterns of authoritarian consolidation, from Mao’s purges to Stalin’s Great Terror, where factionalism is weaponized to justify the removal of potential threats. The framing of these purges as eliminating 'political danger' obscures the systemic risks of hyper-centralization, including the potential for succession crises and the suppression of marginalized voices within the military. Cross-cultural comparisons reveal that regimes with highly personalized military leadership, such as China’s, often face long-term instability, as seen in the Soviet Union’s collapse or post-Saddam Iraq’s fragmentation. To mitigate these risks, China could adopt institutionalized succession mechanisms, decentralize decision-making, establish independent oversight bodies, and promote civil-military dialogue—strategies that have stabilized military governance in other contexts. The absence of these safeguards not only threatens internal cohesion but also risks perpetuating a cycle of factional conflict and authoritarian control.