BEIJING — China’s anti-corruption watchdog announced Wednesday that Bian Zhigang, the deputy head of the country’s defense industry agency and national space administration, is being investigated for what officials described as “suspected serious violations of discipline and law.”
The investigation is part of an extensive, years-long crackdown on corruption launched by President Xi Jinping. The campaign has resulted in dozens of senior government officials and high-ranking military generals being investigated, removed from their posts, or expelled. Just last month, two former Chinese defense ministers received death sentences — with a two-year reprieve — after being convicted on graft charges.
Those sentencings came after a series of recent purges targeting executives at state-owned weapons manufacturers, researchers working on military technology, and nuclear scientists.
Bian has spent much of his career at the defense industry agency, which is formally called the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence. The agency plays a central role in overseeing China’s most advanced defense-related sectors.
According to the agency’s own website, it is “responsible for the organisation and coordination of major matters related to weapons and equipment research and production in the fields of nuclear, space, aviation, shipbuilding, armaments and electronics, as well as the development of core defence industry capabilities.”
Attempts to reach Bian for comment on Wednesday were unsuccessful.
