BEIJING: China named former navy chief Dong Jun as its new defence minister on Friday to replace the last minister who disappeared from public view four months ago.

The appointment by Chinese lawmakers comes as President Xi Jinping upgrades the military as part of his push to make China a dominant world power, a goal that has alarmed many neighbours.

The role of China’s defence minister is to be the public face of the Peoples Liberation Army in its engagement with the media and with other armed forces.

A crucial element of his job is to engage with the United States military to lower the risk of conflict over Taiwan and the South China Sea, two flashpoints to which Dong, 62, is no stranger.

Before becoming the Peoples Liberation Army’s navy chief and made a full general in 2021, he was vice commander of the East Sea Fleet, the backbone of what is now the Eastern Theatre Command — the main force responsible for fighting over Taiwan.

He also served as vice commander of the Southern Theatre Command, which operates in the South China Sea.

“Dong would be familiar with managing near-encounters between Chinese and US military. This is useful when he has to manage crises between both militaries,” said Li Mingjiang, international relations scholar at the Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.

Wen-Ti Sung, political scientist and non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, said the selection of Dong could be a sign that purges are ongoing in the Rocket Force and Equipment Development Department.

The two preceding defence ministers, who came from these two forces, have since disappeared from public view.

Dong replaces Li Shangfu, who had headed the department in charge of equipment procurement and research before taking up the defence post in March. Li has not been seen in public since Aug 25.

Published in Dawn, December 30th, 2023