Ousted China general accused of leaking nuclear secrets to U.S.
Jan. 25 (UPI) — Gen. Zhang Youxia, who helmed China’s military under President Xi Jinping, faces allegations of sharing nuclear secrets with the United States, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.
The Central Military Commission vice chairman was previously ousted alongside the Gen. Liu Zhenli, who served as the Central Military Commission’s Joint Staff chief of staff.
In addition to claims that Youxia, 75, shared important information about the country’s nuclear weapons, he stands accused of creating groups that would erode Communist Party unity, and accepting bribes, the outlet said.
Youxia, who promoted Li Shangfu to his former post as Defense Minister, allegedly accepted a bribe to do so.
“Xi sought to avoid a wholesale cashiering of the top brass in the early years of the anticorruption campaign. He later realized that was impossible, and this move is the denouement of that process,” Christopher Johnson, a former CIA analyst and the head of China Strategies Group, said.
Youxia, who had been a childhood friend of Xi’s, and Zhenli were the fourth and fifth military officials to be ousted since 2024.