China's Military Overseer Promoted to Party's Top Council

Gen. Zhang Shengmin has been promoted to the Politburo, the top leadership council of the Chinese Communist Party, according to The New York Times. The move places him in a position second only to Xi Jinping, who leads the party, in China's military hierarchy.

Zhang has served as the principal overseer of Xi's campaign to purify the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the name for China's armed forces. Xi endorsed the expulsion of dozens of disgraced officials at a recent Communist Party meeting in Beijing, the same report said.

The campaign's aim is to strengthen political loyalty within the armed forces. Three officials in Taiwan told the New York Times that they believed Xi's loyalty campaign would keep the Chinese military focused on its own problems. They said this could hinder preparations for a possible war over Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing claims as its territory.

Military activity at sea has also been visible in recent weeks. Dozens of PLA ships held unannounced drills in waters off the Chinese coast, according to the same report.

Taken together, the personnel changes and the ship exercises are the latest signs of how the military is being reshaped at the top while operations continue at sea. Analysts and officials will watch whether the leadership changes alter the military's readiness.