Two former Chinese defence ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, have received the harshest sentence over a corruption scandal. Under a 7 May ruling by a Chinese military court, both senior officials were sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve.
In Chinese legal practice, a death sentence with a two-year reprieve is usually commuted to life imprisonment if the convicted person does not commit another crime during the reprieve period. However, according to Xinhua, in the cases of Wei and Li, even after the sentence is commuted to life imprisonment, no pardon or parole will be allowed. This means the former heads of China’s defence establishment will spend the rest of their lives behind bars. Both men were also stripped of their political rights for life, while their personal assets will be confiscated.
The court found Wei Fenghe guilty of accepting bribes, while his successor, Li Shangfu, was convicted of both accepting and offering bribes. Wei served as China’s defence minister from 2018 to 2023. Li, meanwhile, remained in office for only a few months before disappearing from public view in 2023 and later being removed from his post.
Although the post of defence minister in China is largely representative, while the Central Military Commission plays the leading role in military decision-making, the punishment of figures from the highest ranks of the military hierarchy sends a strong political message.
According to The Guardian, before becoming defence ministers, Wei and Li held strategic positions linked to major budgets and key military sectors. Wei previously headed China’s Rocket Force, while Li oversaw military equipment procurement. These areas are particularly sensitive for Beijing, as corruption in weapons systems and missile units directly undermines the army’s combat readiness and China’s broader military ambitions.
Western media assess that the process serves two goals for Xi Jinping. On the one hand, Beijing is seeking to eliminate the systemic corruption that poses a real threat to the modernization and combat potential of China’s military. On the other hand, it is a clear warning that absolute loyalty to the party and its leader is mandatory. The verdict shows that there are no longer any “untouchable” figures in China’s military system, including those once seen as close to the center of power.
With this decision, Beijing has shown that “betrayal of the country and corruption” in the People’s Liberation Army will be met with the harshest response.
