Beijing: A Chinese military court on Thursday sentenced former defence ministers Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu to death with a two-year reprieve after finding them guilty in separate bribery cases, according to state-run Xinhua News Agency.

The court ruled that Wei Fenghe was guilty of accepting bribes, while Li Shangfu was found guilty of both accepting and offering bribes. Under China’s legal system, suspended death sentences are often later commuted to life imprisonment.

The verdicts come as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s long-running anti-corruption campaign, which has intensified in recent years and led to major upheavals within the country’s military and political establishment.

Xi launched the anti-corruption drive more than a decade ago, presenting it as an effort to root out corruption within the Communist Party and the armed forces. However, analysts have also viewed the campaign as a means to strengthen political loyalty and tighten control over China’s elite leadership.

The campaign reached new heights earlier this year with the removal of several senior military officials, including China’s highest-ranking generals. The once-powerful Central Military Commission, which previously had 11 members, now reportedly has only one member besides Xi himself.

Wei Fenghe served as China’s defence minister from 2018 to 2023. His successor, Li Shangfu, held the post for only a few months before disappearing from public view and later being removed from office in October 2023.

Li had spent much of his military career overseeing missile systems and procurement within the People’s Liberation Army. He had also been sanctioned by the United States over China’s purchase of Russian military equipment.

Both Wei and Li were expelled from the Communist Party in 2024, a move widely seen as sealing their political futures before formal sentencing.