China has reportedly opened an investigation into Defence Minister Dong Jun over allegations of corruption. The Financial Times quoted current and former U.S. officials as saying that Dong’s case is part of a broader crackdown on military corruption in the country.
While the report remains unconfirmed, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Mao Ning dismissed it as “chasing shadows” during a recent news briefing. The probe comes after a series of anticorruption purges in the Chinese military that have seen at least nine generals from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and several executives from the defense industry removed from their positions.
Dong would be the third successive Chinese defense minister to be accused of corruption, according to unnamed U.S. officials. Appointed in December 2023, Dong previously served as the chief of the PLA Navy and has been involved in military diplomacy, overseeing a recent improvement in U.S.-China military relations, including theatre-level commander talks held for the first time in September.
His predecessor, Li Shangfu, was removed from his post just seven months after appointment and expelled from the Communist Party due to corrupt offenses that include bribery. Since being removed, Li has made no public appearance. A former defense minister, Wei Fenghe, was similarly dealt with, being expelled from the party and sent to prosecutors on corruption charges.
A Communist Party statement issued at the time of Li and Wei’s dismissal described their actions as a betrayal of the party’s trust, causing severe damage to the political environment in the military and the reputation of its senior leaders. Both were found to have accepted large bribes and to have sought personal advantages for others.
Experts believe that these investigations are detrimental to the party’s image and the credibility of military leadership. According to Dylan Loh, an assistant professor at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, such allegations mean “It’s certainly a blow…they will want someone very clean in this role.
Corruption investigations in history have focused on the military because of long-standing ties of the PLA with the business sector. Two other senior officers connected with the Rocket Force, a newly emerging part of the military system, have also been held captive for corruption crimes.
Victor Shih, a specialist on elite politics in China, said that at the time of his naval service, Dong probably controlled procurement budgets in the tens of billions of dollars a year. He warned that fierce competition for the country’s top military slots might lead to constant cycles of accusations, arrests, and new appointments that could keep the ranks in flux.
