China has a new Minister of Defense

China's National Assembly elected General Dong Jun as Minister of Defense, replacing his predecessor Li Shangfu.

"The Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress decided on December 29 to appoint Dong Jun as Minister of National Defense," China's state news agency Xinhua reported. The decision came two months after Senior General Li Shangfu was dismissed from his post.

Dong Jun, 62, studied at Dalian Naval Academy and served in the Chinese navy since 1979. He served as deputy chief of staff of the North Sea Fleet and commander of Naval Unit 92269.

*Lieutenant General Dong Jun, while still serving as a lieutenant general, speaks at the opening ceremony of the Sea Guardians 2020 joint exercise in Karachi, Pakistan in January 2020. Photo: PLA*

In 2013, Dong was appointed deputy commander of the East Sea Fleet and then deputy chief of staff of the Chinese navy. He served as deputy commander of the Southern Theater Command of China in January 2017, was appointed deputy commander of the Chinese navy in March 2021 and became commander of the service six months later.

The decision to appoint Mr. Dong as Minister of Defense comes in the context of China carrying out reforms and modernizing the world's largest military force.

Beijing has not yet announced the reason for Mr. Li’s dismissal. The Equipment Development Bureau, which Mr. Li was in charge of, issued a statement saying it was investigating violations of discipline and regulations in equipment procurement and bidding, and called on the public to provide information about “inappropriate” actions since October 2017.

A key element of the Chinese defense minister's job is to work with the US military to reduce the risk of conflict in the region, especially over the Taiwan Strait.

Li has not met with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during his seven-month tenure. China has said the meeting could not take place because the US has not lifted sanctions on Li, which were imposed in 2018 over China’s purchase of Russian aircraft and equipment. Unlike his predecessor, Dong is not on the US sanctions list.

During a meeting in San Francisco in November, US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to resume high-level security talks between the two countries, which Beijing had suspended following a visit to Taiwan by then-Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi in August 2022.

Nguyen Tien (According to Reuters, AFP, Xinhua )