In the backdrop of a major purge within the People’s Liberation Army of the Chinese Communist Party, the resignations of Liu Cangli, the director, and Mo Zeyao, the deputy director of the Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics (CAEP), have sparked speculation.
The State Council of the Chinese Communist Party announced yesterday (5th) the dismissal of 62-year-old CAEP director Liu Cangli and 53-year-old deputy director Mo Zeyao. He Yingbo, the newly appointed director of the CAEP, previously served as the deputy secretary of the Party Committee of the institution.
The State Council of the Chinese Communist Party also announced the removal of Cong Liang from the position of Deputy Director of the National Development and Reform Commission, appointing him as the Deputy Director of the Development Research Center of the State Council. Cui Xiaofeng was relieved of his duties as Deputy Director of the Civil Aviation Administration and has now been transferred to the position of Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of China Aviation Group. The positions of Luo Yongqiang, the Deputy Director of the National Fire and Rescue Bureau, and Yan Zhichan, the Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in Macau, have also been revoked, both being 60 years old.
The simultaneous dismissal of both the director and deputy director of CAEP has raised concerns, as the reasons behind their removal remain unclear.
Academician Liu Cangli of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is a nuclear weapons expert born in Qishan, Shaanxi in December 1961. He has been serving as the director of CAEP since 2015 and was elected as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2021. He primarily engages in research on detonation and shock wave physics as well as equipment development.
Mo Zeyao, a computer expert born on July 17, 1971, in Taojiang, Hunan, has been the deputy director of CAEP since 2020.
The new director of CAEP, He Yingbo, born in May 1966, previously held positions such as deputy director of CAEP. Prior to his current appointment, he served as the deputy secretary of the Party Committee of CAEP. There is limited publicly available information about him.
According to the official website of the State Key Laboratory of Industrial Equipment Structural Analysis at Dalian University of Technology, a list of members of the Fourth Academic Committee dated April 4, 2015, shows He Yingbo specialized in impact electricity. At that time, he was already a researcher at CAEP.
On February 10, 2020, Mo Zeyao and Qiu Yong were both appointed as deputy directors of CAEP, while He Yingbo’s previous role as deputy director was relinquished. On May 17 of this year, Qiu Yong was appointed as the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology.
CAEP, commonly known as the “Ninth Academy”, is a deputy-ministerial-level national research institute responsible for the research and production of China’s national strategic equipment, including the development of nuclear weapons and laser technology.
Commentator Li Lin told Epoch Times that the massive purge within the CCP’s military is ongoing, and corruption cases within the Rocket Force and equipment systems could potentially affect CAEP. If even the nuclear weapons department falls into disarray, it indicates that Xi Jinping’s so-called “strengthening the military” has become a mockery.
Ahead of the 3rd Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, the CCP’s state-run media, Xinhua News Agency, recently published articles praising Xi Jinping’s “reform and strengthening of the military” over the past decade but avoided mentioning his “achievements” in anti-corruption efforts.
Since last year, corruption scandals within the Rocket Force and equipment systems of the CCP have been exposed, leading to the downfall of a group of military leaders, including Defense Minister Li Shangfu, Rocket Force Commander Li Yuchao, and many senior executives in the defense industry.
Chairman of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Wu Yansheng, Chairman of the China Ordnance Industry Group Liu Shiquan, and Vice General Manager of the China Aerospace Science & Industry Corporation Wang Changqing had their National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference membership revoked at the end of last year. Chairman of the China Aerospace Science & Industry Corporation Yuan Jie and General Manager of the Ordnance Equipment Group Chen Guoying were dismissed from their positions.
Other fallen military industry leaders include Feng Jiehong, Chairman of the China Aerospace Three Rivers Group; Wang Xiaojun, former Director of the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology; Zhang Jianwu, former Party Committee Secretary of the Changchun Institute of Equipment Technology of the China Ordnance Industry Corporation; Li Zhaozhi, former Director of the Equipment Support Department of the China Ordnance Industry Corporation; and He Wenzhong, Deputy General Manager of the China Electronics Technology Group.
The CCP’s nuclear military-industrial complex has also begun to be rectified. In December 2023, Wu Xiujiang, former Party Committee Secretary and Chairman of China Nuclear Group Co., Ltd., was investigated. On January 17 of this year, Zhong Hongliang, former Party Committee Secretary and Chairman of China Nuclear Shaanxi Uranium Enrichment Co., Ltd., was also investigated. In February of this year, Li Guangchang, a member of the Science and Technology Commission and senior advisor of China Nuclear Group, was taken down.