Chinese President Xi Jinping appoints new chief of nuclear arsenal

China on Monday (July 31) announced new leadership for its Rocket Force, replacing the two missing generals who had been in command of the nation's missile forces.

Rocket Force of the People's Liberation Army is the strategic and tactical missile force. This particular army unit oversees the nuclear arsenal.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping, also the military's commander-in-chief, picked Wang Houbin as the new head of the PLA Rocket Force; and Xu Xisheng has been named as the new political commissar.

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Wang was the former deputy commander of the navy. Meanwhile, Xu was formerly the deputy political commissar of the Southern Theatre Command, one of the PLA's five theatre commands.

The new appointments were announced just a day ahead of the 96th anniversary of the PLA's founding on August 1.

Xi has repeatedly called for the military to deepen war and combat planning to increase the chances of victory in actual combat to safeguard China's sovereignty and territory.

According to CCTV, Xi said last week that "we need to push forward the party’s strict discipline and anti-corruption efforts to a deeper level".

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Where is Li Yuchao?

General Li Yuchao headed the PLA's Rocket Force unit, but he and his deputy "disappeared" for months.

The latest report by the state media about the new appointment did not mention where Li was reassigned or state his whereabouts.

But last week, the South China Morning Post newspaper reported, citing military sources, that Li and his current and former deputies were being investigated by the Central Military Commission’s anti-corruption unit.

(With inputs from agencies)

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