By Li Jingyao
Following a leadership change within the disciplinary inspection apparatus of China’s state-owned arms conglomerate earlier this year, senior executives at the China North Industries Group Corporation (Norinco) have been removed one after another. Observers say the developments have placed Zhang Guoqing — a sitting Politburo member and vice premier who previously held top posts within the arms industry — under mounting political risk.
On Dec. 13, China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and the Heilongjiang Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection announced that Xia Bin, former board director of Harbin First Machinery Group Co., Ltd., is suspected of “serious violations of discipline and law” and is currently under disciplinary review and supervisory investigation within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Senior Norinco executives placed under investigation
Just days earlier, on Dec. 7, the CCDI’s disciplinary inspection team stationed at Norinco reported that Hu Keyu, deputy general manager of Zhenhua Oil Holdings Co., Ltd., was also under investigation for “serious violations of discipline and law.”
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Previously, on April 30, Wang Jian, assistant general manager and chief quality officer of Qiqihar Peace Heavy Industry Group Co., Ltd., another Norinco subsidiary, was placed under disciplinary review and supervisory investigation.
What has drawn particular attention is the timing of these cases. In March, Chen Zhengyun, a senior discipline official without a military-industrial background, was appointed head of the CCDI inspection team at Norinco and a member of the company’s Party leadership group. Shortly after his arrival, Xia Bin, Hu Keyu, and Wang Jian were all taken down in rapid succession.
Turmoil at the top
Norinco’s leadership has seen frequent upheaval in recent years. Former chairman Yin Jiaxu was placed under investigation in April 2021, three years after stepping down. Chairman Liu Shiquan was stripped of his membership in the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in December 2023. Former general manager Liu Dashan stepped down in February this year, and his whereabouts have not been publicly disclosed.
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Analysts note that the pattern suggests a broad internal purge rather than isolated cases. Attention has increasingly turned to Zhang Guoqing, a current CCP Politburo member and vice premier, who served within the arms industry from 2008 to 2013.
Political commentator Li Yanming previously wrote that at the CCP’s 20th Party Congress, five officials with military-industrial backgrounds were elevated to the Politburo, dubbed by observers as the “military-industrial five.” They include Liu Guozhong, Zhang Guoqing, Yuan Jiajun, Ma Xingrui, and Li Ganjie.
Since then, Ma Xingrui was removed from his post as Xinjiang Party secretary in July, while Li Ganjie was reassigned in a role swap with Shi Taifeng to head the United Front Work Department. Yuan Jiajun and Ma Xingrui share long-standing ties within China’s aerospace system. Ma Xingrui has recently been the subject of escalating negative rumors, including his absence from two Politburo meetings and the Central Economic Work Conference.
Overseas Chinese political blogger Jiang Wangzheng has claimed that Ma’s case is expanding rapidly, with alleged gift-giving lists already exposed. According to Jiang, “most of the time, Peng Liyuan was present at the gift-giving scenes,” and figures such as Li Xi, Ding Xuexiang, and Yuan Jiajun are also said to be implicated. These claims have not been independently verified.
Arms industry as a power nexus
U.S.-based political commentator Chen Pokong noted on his program that during Zhang Guoqing’s tenure as general manager of Norinco, the company’s output value reached roughly 300 billion yuan. Equipment for China’s navy, air force, ground forces, Rocket Force, and Strategic Support Force all passed through Norinco’s production system.
“China North Industries is extremely important,” Chen said, “but many of the people inside it have already disappeared or fallen.” He added that Yin Jiaxu, who served as deputy general manager alongside Zhang Guoqing, was investigated after the 20th Party Congress. “When the number-two falls, the number-one cannot be untouched. Zhang Guoqing is therefore in a high-risk position.”
Chen further pointed out that a number of Zhang’s former subordinates at Norinco’s regional subsidiaries have been detained, coinciding with the replacement of the group’s disciplinary inspection chief—suggesting that the crackdown is closely tied to factional power struggles.
Broader political reverberations
Li Yanming observed that the sweeping reshuffle within Norinco’s top ranks raises the question of whether Zhang Guoqing will ultimately be implicated, making the arms industry probe a key indicator of broader elite infighting within the CCP.
Since Shi Taifeng was transferred in April to head the CCP’s Organization Department, he has taken control of key personnel decisions and has also become involved in CCDI-related work. Shi also serves as head of the CPPCC Party group’s inspection leadership team.
Chen Pokong argued that if Ma Xingrui were to “confess fully,” the fallout would extend far beyond Xinjiang, triggering political earthquakes in Guangdong, Xinjiang, and the arms industry, potentially even implicating Politburo Standing Committee member Li Xi. “Li Xi has already been sidelined,” Chen said. “Some major cases are no longer being handled by Li Xi but by Shi Taifeng. CCP elite politics are undergoing intense changes.”
As Ma Xingrui’s case continues to reverberate, online speculation has increasingly linked other senior officials to the unfolding investigations. Attention has also turned to Xi Jinping’s wife Peng Liyuan, who is said to have close ties to Ma. According to unverified reports, Peng was placed under “soft detention” and exit controls as early as May.
Analysts suggest that if Ma Xingrui formally falls, the so-called “Shandong faction” within Xi’s inner circle could collapse, further weakening Xi’s political base at a moment of deepening internal turmoil.
Editorial note: Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Vision Times.
