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China’s youngest top general poised to fill key PLA strategy job
- Liu Zhenli has been tipped to head China’s Joint Staff Department, according to video clues and a source close to the military
- The former commander of the People’s Liberation Army ground force is a highly decorated war hero who fought in the Sino-Vietnam border conflicts
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China’s youngest top general and a war hero who fought in the Sino-Vietnam border conflicts has been tipped to head China’s Joint Staff Department, according to clues in a report from state broadcaster CCTV.
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On Wednesday, CCTV aired video footage showing General Liu Zhenli, former commander of the People’s Liberation Army ground force, wearing an arm badge of the Central Military Commission (CMC) Joint Staff Department while attending the Communist Party’s plenum of 358 full and alternate Central Committee members, an indication that he was promoted to the CMC leadership.
“Liu is going to replace Li Zuocheng, the incumbent chief of the CMC Joint Staff Department, who is about to retire,” a source close to the PLA, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic, told the South China Morning Post.
“The CMC will announce its new leadership after the 20th Communist Party congress.”
The party congress, set to kick off on Sunday, will bring a major personnel reshuffle.
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Like Li, Liu is a top Chinese general with real combat experience, which is the key reason for his promotion, the source said. Both men were promoted to the Joint Staff Department after serving as ground force chief.
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