A dramatic and growing purge of senior Chinese military officials has raised new fears that China’s ruling Communist Party may be headed toward a period of internal instability. While Chinese President Xi Jinping has secured more personal authority than any leader since Mao Zedong, the recent disappearance of top generals and the removal of his close allies suggest that the system underneath him may be unraveling. For outside observers, the turmoil is not just about corruption or discipline. It is a warning sign that something deeper is wrong at the heart of China’s government.
China’s Top Military Leadership in Crisis
The latest and most serious case involves Gen. He Weidong, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission and one of the most powerful men in China’s armed forces. He Weidong has not been seen in public since March 11, 2025. He was notably absent from two major events in early April: a central Communist Party conference and an annual ceremony involving the People’s Liberation Army. Rumors began circulating through Chinese media and foreign outlets that he had been detained or placed under investigation.
The Chinese Defense Ministry was asked directly about He’s status at a press briefing on March 27. Their response was vague. A spokesman said he was “unaware” of any investigation, but refused to deny it outright. This was a stark contrast to a similar case just a few months earlier. In November 2024, when reports surfaced about a probe into new Defense Minister Dong Jun, the ministry was quick to dismiss them as “purely fabricated with malicious intent.”
The silence on He Weidong is even more telling when viewed in context. Just months earlier, former Defense Minister Li Shangfu was dismissed in October 2023 and formally expelled from the Communist Party in June 2024. Another senior military figure, Adm. Miao Hua, was placed under investigation in late 2024. All of these men were seen as loyal allies of Xi Jinping. Their removal suggests that the problem is not simply one of eliminating political enemies, but that Xi is now targeting people within his own circle.
As one expert, Kung Shan-Son of Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told The Epoch Times, “Xi is leaning on the anti-corruption campaign as a tool to tighten his grip on the PLA.” He also noted that the purge of trusted subordinates “indicates that Xi is nervous about control slipping out of his hands.”
From Anti-Corruption to Political Infighting
Xi Jinping has often portrayed himself as a reformer cleaning up a corrupt system. Since taking office in 2012, he has launched what he calls a “self-revolution,” targeting high-ranking “tigers” and low-level “flies” in a massive anti-corruption campaign. But the campaign has increasingly taken on the feel of a political purge. It is not only targeting rivals. It is also eliminating those who owe their careers to Xi himself.
According to Wang Youqun, a former senior aide to Politburo Standing Committee member Wei Jianxing, this change in strategy signals something much deeper. In an April 12 opinion piece for The Epoch Times, Wang wrote that the recent removal of high-level officials like Li and Miao shows “the erosion of Xi’s power over the military.” He pointed out that Xi broke traditional rules of promotion in 2022 to elevate He Weidong to the number two position in the PLA, calling it a “fast-tracked political reward.” If He is now being taken down, Wang argued, “it may not be Xi’s own intention. It may mean Xi has lost control.”
Adding to the intrigue, Wang also reported that other senior military leaders may already be under investigation or facing removal, although no official announcements have been made.
Another commentator, Professor Zhang Tianliang, suggested that Xi may be boxed in by a “deep state” within the CCP. Speaking on his YouTube channel in February 2025, Zhang said that Xi is aware of a powerful network of bureaucrats and military elites who are using his own language and policies against him. He explained, “They are using Xi’s words to oppose Xi. That is how serious the internal sabotage has become.”
Rumors, Resistance, and Retaliation
One source of these concerns is a widely circulated article that appeared on overseas Chinese websites earlier this year. Titled The Inevitable Failure of Xi Jinping, the article claims to have been written by a mid-level official in the CCP’s Central Committee. It describes a massive internal resistance movement among China’s technocratic class, many of whom came of age during the reform era that began in the late 1970s. According to the article, these officials see Xi’s leadership style as a danger to China’s future and have quietly begun to obstruct his policies from within.
The article reads, “This is a phenomenon that permeates all spheres of Chinese politics, economics, propaganda, and justice. The technocrats are so deeply entrenched that Xi will never be able to purge them thoroughly.” It warns that the structure Xi has created is brittle, and the regime could collapse under pressure. “Hence, Xi’s rule is doomed to inevitable failure.”
Australia-based Chinese dissident Yuan Hongbing told reporters that the situation within the military is just as tense. Citing sources inside the PLA, he said that Adm. Miao Hua, after being detained, reportedly broke down and began writing out a list of names and crimes committed by other officers. Yuan described it as a “panic reaction” that reflects how unstable and dangerous the internal situation has become.
The Shadow of the Soviet Union
Xi Jinping has spoken many times about his fear of a Soviet-style collapse. He sees the fall of the USSR as a cautionary tale and believes that disunity, weak ideology, and loss of control were the key reasons for the Soviet Union’s rapid disintegration in 1991. In a 2023 closed-door speech to the Communist Party’s Central Committee, Xi warned, “A fortress is most easily breached from within. The only ones who can defeat us are ourselves.”
This belief has shaped Xi’s entire approach to governance. He has eliminated term limits, centralized authority, and intensified propaganda efforts. He has also cracked down hard on private businesses, civil society, and intellectual debate. But experts are increasingly warning that Xi may be creating the very conditions he fears.
A report from October 2024, titled What Keeps Xi Jinping Awake at Night, highlighted the risks of over-centralization. It warned that by removing all opposing voices and relying entirely on loyalty, Xi has turned the Chinese system into a rigid, fearful bureaucracy. If a major crisis—such as economic collapse, war, or social unrest—were to erupt, the system might not be able to adapt or respond effectively.
Xi’s model of governance, the report argued, “mirrors some of the worst missteps of the late Soviet Union.” These include excessive control of the economy, suppression of dissent, and refusal to plan for leadership succession.
Could China Collapse?
Although China remains a global economic power and a central part of global supply chains, several troubling signs have emerged. The economy is slowing, youth unemployment is rising, and the property sector is in deep trouble. At the same time, many Chinese people are becoming disillusioned with the government’s promises. New social trends like “lying flat” and “let it rot” reflect growing despair among young people.
Observers worry that the social contract that kept China stable for decades—economic growth in exchange for political control—may be breaking down. If the government can no longer deliver prosperity, public trust in the Communist Party could erode.
One foreign affairs analyst put it bluntly: “China does not need to collapse like the Soviet Union to become unstable. It only needs to stall long enough for internal fractures to grow beyond repair.”
A Dangerous Turning Point
The growing number of purges, disappearances, and investigations inside China’s military and political establishment may be signs that Xi Jinping’s power is starting to fracture. What makes this moment particularly dangerous is that these purges are no longer limited to rivals. Xi is now targeting the very people he once trusted most. That means the circle is closing in on itself.
If Xi loses the confidence of the military, the Party bureaucracy, or both, the consequences for China and the world could be enormous. Some fear that the country could fragment into regional factions if the central government breaks down. Others believe that Xi will survive—but only by becoming even more repressive and paranoid.
What is clear is that the façade of stability is beginning to crack. As one veteran China watcher observed, “The purges are no longer a sign of strength. They are a sign of fear.”
ACZ Editor: Xi is tough and is doing everything possible to purge opposition, but perhaps it is too much. The more he purges the more suspicions will rise against him. We don’t think he is in danger just yet, but this shifts China a bit more toward uncertainty.