China's Defense Minister is under investigation, U.S. officials say
China's defense minister, Gen. Li Shangfu, has been placed under investigation, according to two U.S.
officials, fueling speculation about further upheaval in the military after the abrupt removal of two top commanders in charge of the country's nuclear force.
Li has not been seen in public in more than two weeks. He had been expected to take part in a meeting last week in Vietnam, but there was no word of his attendance.
Asked by reporters Friday about Li's whereabouts, Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said she had no information.
The investigation points to questions about Communist Party leader Xi Jinping's confidence in his own military, a pillar of his ambitions abroad and dominance at home.
Just six weeks ago, Xi replaced the two most senior commanders of the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, which oversees China's nuclear missiles. The abrupt dismissals suggested that Xi was seeking to reassert his control over the military and purge perceived corruption, disloyalty and dysfunction from its ranks, analysts have said.
Many experts believe that the military commanders may be accused of corruption, though some have said that suspicions of disloyalty toward Xi within the People's Liberation Army, or PLA, may be involved.
In July, China also dismissed the foreign minister, Qin Gang — another official who had risen rapidly under Xi — without explanation. The two U.S.
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