China's Xi chairs party meeting on combatting corruption

ISTANBUL

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday chaired a meeting of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in a stated effort to combat corruption, improve conduct, and build integrity for the year ahead.

The meeting said that in 2025, under the “strong leadership” of the CPC Central Committee, authorities at all levels intensified their efforts to “improve conduct, build integrity, and combat corruption, maintaining a tough stance against corruption,” according to state-run Xinhua News.

It said that discipline, inspection, and supervision bodies in 2026 “must advance full and rigorous Party self-governance with higher standards and more effective measures, to provide a strong guarantee for economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).”

Before the meeting, Xi chaired a session of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, where reports were presented on the work of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision for 2025, along with preparations for the Fifth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

The Fifth Plenary Session is set to take place on Jan. 12-14.

Xi has promoted two military officials from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) to the rank of general, the highest rank for officers in active service in China, amid an anti-corruption purge within the military.

Footage broadcast by state CCTV indicated that Gen. Chang Dingqiu and Guo Puxiao, Air Force commander and political commissar, respectively, were not present at a ceremony to fill top-level vacancies caused by the crackdown, according to the South China Morning Post.

In October, Beijing announced the expulsion of two members of the powerful Central Military Commission as part of disciplinary action taken against nine officers over corruption-related offenses.

In 2025, China sentenced multiple senior officials to death for corruption charges, including former Agriculture Minister Tang Renjian and former Sports Minister Gou Zhongwen.

Beijing also executed Bai Tianhui, former general manager of China Huarong International, on Dec. 9 after he was earlier sentenced for bribery.