China's missing defense minister is reportedly under investigation for corruption

General Li Shangfu, who was appointed to the post only in mid-March, has not appeared in public for about two weeks. Photo: HOW HWEE YOUNG /EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

China has refused to confirm the whereabouts of its defense minister amid reports that he is under investigation for corruption and is likely to be removed from office.

< p>Expected purge of General Li Shangfu It is the latest in a series of dismissals of senior officials that have cast doubt on President Xi Jinping's political views and increased uncertainty over the management of his foreign policy.

President Xi himself has kept a low profile on the international stage in recent weeks , making the surprise decision not to join the world's most powerful leaders at the G20 summit in India earlier this month, a move diplomats say could indicate Beijing is increasingly distancing itself from the West.

Gen Lee, appointed to the post only in mid-March, has not been seen in public for about two weeks and abruptly canceled a meeting in Vietnam last week, blaming «health reasons» before reports of his removal emerged.

The Financial Times reported on Thursday that the US government believes he is the subject of an internal investigation, and the Wall Street Journal reported that authorities picked him up last week, citing a person close to decision-making in Beijing.

The investigation was later reported to be related to the purchase of military equipment, although Chinese authorities have not released any information about the reason for his unexplained disappearance.

“I am not aware of the reasons for his unexplained disappearance. situation,» said Mao Ning, spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, when asked about the defense minister at a regular briefing on Friday. » /> Former Defense Secretary Ben Wallace at a bilateral meeting with General Li Shangfu

Questions about General Li's position arise following the dramatic ouster of Qin Gang, the foreign minister, who also disappeared from public view for about a month in July.

During his absence, China's Foreign Ministry also accused him of problems with health, and its sudden replacement has not yet been fully explained.

In August, President Xi also removed two top generals from the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLA), who are overseeing the expansion of the country's nuclear and missile arsenal, sending shock waves through the elite force.

'Unpredictable turns in China's policy' elite»

The latest shake-up has sparked speculation among senior diplomats about unpredictable turns within China's ruling elite.

Beijing «now resembled Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None,» joked Rahm Emanuel, the US ambassador to Japan, in X, formerly known as Twitter.

“First, Foreign Minister Qin Gang disappeared, then the commanders of the missile forces disappeared, and now Defense Minister Li Shangfu has not been seen in public for two weeks,” he wrote with the hashtag #MysteryInBeijingBuilding.

Geng Li already faced US sanctions imposed under Trump in 2018 and was linked to China's acquisition of Russian weapons while he headed the PLA's General Directorate of Arms Acquisition and Development.

Beijing's frustration with Washington's refusal to lift sanctions when he took over as defense secretary has since stymied already frosty military relations between the two countries.

Analysts have suggested a purge of senior Chinese officials over the potential potential. The corruption allegations reflect poorly on President Xi's vetting process for selecting senior leaders.

Foreign diplomats in China, meanwhile, believe the president's recent no-show at the G20 summit reflects a worrying trend of Beijing cutting itself off from the West. and its allies.

Beijing raised eyebrows again on Friday by announcing that Han Zheng, China's vice president, will attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week in place of top diplomat Wang Yi.

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Wang is instead heading to Moscow for talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, although he could still make a separate trip to the US to pave the way for a possible summit between President Xi and US President Joe Biden.

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