Taiwan has stepped up its monitor on China after an “abnormal change” in the country’s top military leadership. The country said that its guard was high after Zhang Youxia, the second in command under President Xi Jingping and the vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, was placed under investigation for serious legal violations.
Zhang was seen as one of Xi’s closest military allies.
China’s ministry announced on Saturday that Zhang and Liu Zenli, the chief of staff of the CMC’s joint staff department, were under investigation after Zhang reportedly was accused of leaking information about the country’s nuclear program to the US and accepting bribes for official acts, such as promoting an officer to defence minister.
Security analysts and foreign diplomats are watching the development closely due to Zhang’s personal political closeness with Xi. The investigation suggests that there is turbulence within China’s top military leadership. Zhang is a member of the the politburo of the ruling Communist party and is one of just a few leading officers with combat experience, especially having taken part in the 1979 border conflict in Vietnam, The Guardian reported.
“We will continue to closely monitor abnormal changes among the top levels of China’s party, government, and military leadership. The military’s position is based on the fact that China has never abandoned the use of force against Taiwan,” Taiwan Defence Minister Wellington Koo told reporters at parliament.
Koo said what the ministry was looking at is not any “single leadership reshuffle that would be enough to draw conclusions.” Taiwan will use a range of joint intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance methods, as well as intelligence-sharing, to “grasp” China’s possible intentions, he added.
Koo said later in the day to lawmakers that the China threat was worsening amid war games daily military activities, and the increase in its defence spending.
Taiwan will also be exchanging intelligence with its partner on changes taking place within China’s military structure, Koo said.
China’s top general Zhang Youxia is under investigation for leaking nuclear secrets to the US. Here is why Taiwan is concerned
