China has named Zhang Shengmin as the country's second-highest ranked military general and added 11 new members of the elite Central Committee of China's ruling Communist Party in a communique of the fourth plenum concluded on Thursday (October 23).

Zhang, announced as the vice chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission (CMC), replaces He Weidong who was recently ousted from the position along with eight other senior officials expelled from the ruling party on grounds of "grave violations of Party discipline and state laws".

This makes Zhang second only to Xi Jinping in China’s military chain of command and the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

Xi Jinping also serves as the General Secretary of the ruling CPC which gives him far more power than serving as the President. As the Gene

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