Li Shangfu | |
|---|---|
李尚福 | |
.jpg) Li in 2023 | |
| State Councilor of China | |
| In office 12 March 2023 – 24 October 2023 | |
| Premier | Li Qiang |
| 13thMinister of National Defense | |
| In office 12 March 2023 – 24 October 2023 | |
| Premier | Li Qiang |
| CMC Chairman | Xi Jinping |
| Preceded by | Wei Fenghe |
| Succeeded by | Dong Jun |
| Head of theEquipment Development Department | |
| In office September 2017 – October 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Zhang Youxia |
| Succeeded by | Xu Xueqiang |
| Commander of theChina Manned Space Program | |
| In office September 2017 – October 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Zhang Youxia |
| Succeeded by | Xu Xueqiang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 1958 (age 67) Chengdu,Sichuan, China |
| Political party | Chinese Communist Party (1980–2024; expelled) |
| Alma mater | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  People's Republic of China |
| Branch/service |  People's Liberation Army Ground Force People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force |
| Years of service | 1982–2024 |
| Rank |  General(stripped in 2024) |
Li Shangfu (Chinese:李尚福;pinyin:Lǐ Shàngfú; born February 1958) is a Chineseaerospace engineer and former military administrator. He served as the 13thMinister of National Defense and asState Councillor of China from March to October 2023.
Li joined thePeople's Liberation Army (PLA) as a technician at theXichang Satellite Launch Center in 1982. He spent 31 years working at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, including 10 years as the center director. Li Shangfu served as deputy director of thePLA General Armaments Department from 2014 to 2016 and director of theEquipment Development Department of theCentral Military Commission (CMC) from 2017 to 2022. He was conferred the rank of General in July 2019 and was appointed as a member of the CMC in October 2022. He was appointed as the 13th Minister of National Defense and as State Councillor in March 2023.
In August 2023, Li disappeared from public view and was then removed from office on October 24, 2023. He is both the shortest-serving Minister of National Defense and the first from thePLA Strategic Support Force. In June 2024, he was expelled from theChinese Communist Party (CCP) following corruption charges and his case transferred to the military's judiciary for criminal prosecution, and his rank of General revoked.
Li Shangfu was born in February 1958 inChengdu,Sichuan Province, with hisancestral home inXingguo County,Jiangxi Province. He is the son of Li Shaozhu (Chinese:李绍珠), aRed Army veteran and former high-ranking officer of thePLA Railway Force [zh].[1] Li Shangfu joined the PLA when he entered theNational University of Defense Technology in 1978, and joined the CCP in June 1980. After graduating in 1982, he began working at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center as a technician.[2][3]
Li attained aDoctor of Engineering incontrol theory andcontrol engineering fromChongqing University.[3]
In December 2003, he was promoted to Director (Commander) of the center at the age of 45. In 2006, he attained the rank ofmajor general.[2] In his ten years as director of the Xichang center, Li oversaw several rocket launches, including the launch of theChang'e 2 lunar probe in October 2010.[4]
After 31 years working in Xichang, Li was appointedChief of Staff of thePLA General Armaments Department (GAD) in 2013, replacing Major GeneralShang Hong.[1][2] A year later, he was made deputy director of the GAD.[2]
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In 2016, Li was appointed Deputy Commander of the newly establishedPLA Strategic Support Force, which is responsible for cyberspace, space, and other high-tech warfare. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general in the same year.[2] In September 2017, Li was appointed Director of theEquipment Development Department of the CMC, the successor department of the GAD, replacing GeneralZhang Youxia.[2]
In October 2017, Li was elected a member of the19th CCP Central Committee.[5]
Li Shangfu was conferred the rank of major general in July 2006. In August 2016, he was conferred the rank of lieutenant general. In July 2019, he was conferred the rank of general.[6]
In October 2022, he was nominated as a member of the 20th CMC of the CCP by Party general secretaryXi Jinping.[7] He ranked first among the members of the CMC.[7]
On January 18, 2023, Li Shangfu attended the CMC promotion ceremony, and was appointed State Councilor and Minister of National Defense on March 12 of the same year, succeedingWei Fenghe.[8] According toThe Diplomat, Li's promotion reflects Chinese attempts to prioritize aerospace in its defense modernization program, against a backdrop of increasing technological competition between China and the United States.[9]
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On April 17, 2023, Li made his first overseas visit to Russia. As part of his four-day visit, he met with Russian presidentVladimir Putin and Defense MinisterSergei Shoigu inMoscow. During his meeting, he stated theties between China and Russia ‘surpass military-political alliances of theCold War era’.[10][11] On April 28, he met withIndian Minister of DefenseRajnath Singh as part of theShanghai Cooperation Organisation defense ministers' meeting inNew Delhi, India, making it the first visit to India by a Chinese Defense Minister since the2020 border skirmishes between Indian and Chinese troops.[12]
In June 2023, at the 2023IISSShangri-La Dialogue inSingapore, Li made public comments stating that war with the United States would be an unbearable disaster and that both the United States and China needed to seek more common ground in the wake of recent escalations between the two countries.[13]
In September 2023,Reuters reported that Li was under anti-corruption investigations by theCommission for Discipline Inspection of the CMC (CMCCDI).[14] His absence had been observed and speculated on by U.S. government officials, who told theFinancial Times they believed that Li was under investigation.[15]
On 24 October 2023, the sixth meeting of the Standing Committee of the14th National People's Congress (NPC) decided to remove Li Shangfu from the posts of State Councilor and Minister of National Defense and removeQin Gang from the post of State Councilor.[16][17] He was also removed from the CMC.[17] With a tenure of seven months, Li is the shortest-serving minister of national defense of the People's Republic of China.[18] His last public appearance was on 29 August 2023, when he delivered a speech at a security forum with African nations held in Beijing.[17] On 4 March 2024, NPC spokespersonLou Qinjian announced Li was no longer a delegate to the NPC,[19] though there had been no official announcements on Li's dismissal or resignation until 13 September 2024, when the Standing Committee of the 14th NPC announced Li's dismissal.[20]
On 27 June 2024, theCCP Politburo announced that Li, along with former defense minister Wei Fenghe, have been expelled from the party for "disciplinary and law violations", and the case has been referred to the PLA's procuratorial organs for criminal prosecution, with Li being accused of accepting financial bribes as well as bribing others. Both the men were also stripped of their rank of general.[21][22] In July 2024, the3rd Plenary Session of the20th CCP Central Committee confirmed the decision to expel Li.[23]
On 20 September 2018, Li Shangfu, along with theEquipment Development Department, were sanctioned by the U.S. government for "engaging in significant transactions with persons" sanctioned under United States federal lawCAATSA, namely for transactions that involved "Russia's transfer to China ofSu-35 combat aircraft andS-400 surface-to-air missile system-related equipment."[24][25][26] As a result, he is included in theSpecially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.[27] Despite the sanctions imposed on him by the United States, he would be allowed to conduct official meetings with his American counterparts although an exemption will not be issued to waive his sanction designation.[28][29]
On 21 May 2023,U.S. PresidentJoe Biden stated thathis administration was considering lifting sanctions on Li,[30] though later in a press briefing on 22 May,U.S. State Department spokespersonMatthew Miller stated that the United States is not considering lifting sanctions.[31]
Quotations related toLi Shangfu at Wikiquote
Media related toLi Shangfu at Wikimedia Commons| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Director of theXichang Satellite Launch Center 2003–2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Shang Hong [zh] | Chief of Staff of the Headquarters of theGeneral Armament Department of the People's Liberation Army 2013–2014 | Succeeded by |
| New title | Chief of Staff of thePeople's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force 2016–2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander of theChina Manned Space Program 2017–2022 | Succeeded by |
| Head of theEquipment Development Department of the Central Military Commission 2017–2022 | ||
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by GeneralWei Fenghe | Minister of National Defense 2023 | Succeeded by AdmiralDong Jun |
Li Qiang Cabinet I (2023–2028) | ||
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