China investigates defence minister for corruption: report

CHINESE Defence Minister Dong Jun has been placed under investigation for corruption, a report said Wednesday, the latest official to fall in a sweeping crackdown on graft in the country’s military.

Citing current and former US officials familiar with the situation, British newspaper Financial Times said the investigation into Dong was part of that broader probe into military corruption.

Neither Beijing’s foreign ministry nor its embassy in Washington replied to AFP’s request for confirmation on Wednesday morning.

If confirmed, Dong would be the third Chinese defence minister in a row to fall under investigation for corruption.

A former navy commander, he was appointed defence minister in December following the surprise removal of predecessor Li Shangfu just seven months into the job.

Li was later expelled from the ruling Communist Party for offences including suspected bribery, state media said.

BT in your inbox

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign Up

Sign Up

His predecessor, Wei Fenghe, was also kicked out of the party and passed on to prosecutors over alleged corruption.

Beijing has deepened a crackdown on alleged graft in the armed forces over the past year, with President Xi Jinping this month ordering the military to stamp out corruption and strengthen its “war-preparedness”.

The intensity of the anti-graft drive in the army has been partially driven by fears that it may affect China’s ability to wage a future war, Bloomberg reported citing US officials this year.

SEE ALSO

Chinese red tape leaves billions of US dollars of deals in limbo

Trafigura facing US$1.1 billion hit in Mongolia after fraud probe: sources

End of golden era for Chinese investors in Bordeaux wine

China punished 589,000 people for graft in nine months

Xi’s stronger grip on legislature shows lack of checks on power

China jails former top central banker for life for bribery

More

The country’s secretive Rocket Force - which oversees China’s vast arsenal of strategic missiles, both conventional and nuclear - has come under particularly intense scrutiny.

In July, a top Chinese official in the Rocket Force, Sun Jinming, was placed under investigation for corruption.

Sun was kicked out of the ruling Communist Party and placed under investigation for “grave violations of party discipline and laws”, state news agency Xinhua said at the time, using a common euphemism for graft.

At least two other high-ranking officers connected to the Rocket Force, a relatively new unit of the Chinese military, have also been removed for graft. AFP