China elevates a military general to the Politburo and seeks to strengthen party discipline

This move comes about a year before President Xi Jinping is expected to secure his fourth five-year term.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3422x2282+0+0/resize/3422x2282!/quality/85/format/webp/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fcc%2Fcc%2F5481abda4bb2a1f0f3d355fbfd5f%2Fap26302467609122.jpg' alt='Chinese President Xi Jinping, center left and Zhang Shengmin, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission second from right attend a ceremony in honor of fallen national heroes at the Monument to the People's Heroes to mark Martyrs' Day at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026.'/><p>This move comes about a year before President Xi Jinping is expected to secure his fourth five-year term.</p><p>(Image credit: Ng Han Guan)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=g-s1-150645' />