Chinese Defense Minister Shangfu missing for 3 weeks

China's Defense Minister Li Shangfu has been missing for the last 3 weeks. According to Reuters report, he is accused of corruption. Shangfu is facing investigation in cases related to the purchase of military weapons. According to the Financial Times, the US government has expressed fear that Shangfu may also be removed from the post.

American media Wall Street Journal quoted a Chinese official as saying that the Defense Minister has been taken for questioning. On the other hand, US Ambassador Emmanuel present in Japan has expressed the possibility of Shangfu being under house arrest. Shangfu was missing from the meetings with Vietnam and Singapore on 7–8 September.

He was last seen on August 29, giving a speech at a security forum with African countries in Beijing. Earlier that month he also visited Russia and Belarus. Like Shangfu, China's Foreign Minister Qian Gang had also gone missing for a long time in July. He was later removed from the post of minister.

In fact, in July, the arms procurement unit in China's Defense Ministry had issued a notice. In this, it was said that irregularities should be removed from the bidding process for arms purchase. The unit had publicly sought reports that contained evidence of mistakes.

This report was sought around October 2017. At that time, Li Shangfu was the head of the arms purchasing department. He was on this post till October 2022. According to Reuters, the names of 8 more officers of this unit are also included in the investigation.

Who is Li Shangfu?

• 65-year-old Li Shangfu was born in February 1958. He is the son of Li Shaoju, commander of the People's Liberation Army.
• According to Chinese media, he received a degree from the PLA's National University of Defense Technology in 1982 and later earned a master's degree in engineering. He was posted at the Army's Ji Chang Satellite Launch Center for more than 30 years.
• In 2016, Lee was made the deputy commander of the Strategic Support Force. The next year, he was appointed head of the army's procurement unit.
• Shangfu is one of the Five State Councillors. It is a Chinese cabinet post that ranks higher than that of ordinary ministers.
• The US had imposed sanctions on Lee in 2018. Shangfu was accused of purchasing weapons from Rosoboron Export, Russia's largest arms manufacturer.

Shangfu's last public appearance

Lee attended a security conference near Moscow in Russia on August 15.
On August 17, the government of Belarus released a photo of the meeting between President Alexander Lukashenko and Li. On August 29, Li spoke at the Africa Peace and Security Forum in Beijing.

Disappearance of powerful people is not a new thing in China

The disappearance of powerful people in China is not a new thing. This has been going on since the time of Mao, the founder of modern China. Hundred Flowers Campaign was launched during Mao's time. Under this, people were given the freedom to criticize and were also asked to point out the shortcomings of the system. After this, many people did this, but whoever did this was never found again.

That means those people were killed. This was Mao's move. Actually, he wanted to identify his opponents present inside. It is being said that Xi Jinping is also adopting the same strategy. The list of people missing in China includes names ranging from actors, activists to sportspersons.

In February, Bao Fan, considered a big name in China's IT sector, also went missing. According to his investment bank China Renaissance, he was summoned in connection with a government investigation, after which he could not be contacted. Bao Fan is considered a rainmaker for the Chinese tech industry.

He not only facilitated deals between the biggest companies in the industry, but his investment bank also invested in many start-ups. Bao Phan's parents were diplomats. He studied in Norway and has also worked in institutions like Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse. In 2015, he got the cab hailing platforms of Alibaba and Tencent merged.