Zhang Shengmin Joins China's Inner Circle as Discipline Rules Tighten

China's Communist Party leaders promoted Gen. Zhang Shengmin to the Politburo on Thursday. Zhang serves as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission. He also acts as deputy secretary of the CMC Commission for Discipline Inspection.

The promotion restores military representation to the top governing body of the party. President Xi Jinping previously removed two senior generals from the commission. Those purges left Zhang as the only other member besides Xi. Consequently, the Politburo had no representatives from the People's Liberation Army prior to this decision.

Party leaders adopted a resolution to strengthen internal self-governance and anti-corruption efforts. The document describes current tasks as increasingly arduous. It calls for uniting the people to safeguard national sovereignty and development interests.

The resolution emphasizes the need to root out corruption and maintain ideological purity. Officials state the party must enhance its long-term governance capacity. They aim to preserve close ties with the public while maintaining progressive nature.

These decisions emerged from a four-day closed-door meeting. The gathering occurs about one year before Xi is expected to secure a fourth five-year term. Party members reviewed earlier personnel changes during the session. They confirmed the removal of top members and military officials.

Neil Thomas, a senior fellow at Asia Policy, noted that the plenum revealed wider purges than anticipated. He calculated an attendance rate of 74 percent. This marks the lowest participation rate since the era of former leader Mao Zedong.