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if you go to spectator.com.uk for slash jingu. This offer is UK only and subject to Chinese Whispers with me, Cindy Yu. Every episode I'll be talking to journalists, experts and long-time China watches about the latest in Chinese politics, society and more. There'll be a smattering of history to catch you up on the background knowledge and some context as well. How do the Chinese see these issues?

More than a year after Xi Jinping purged two senior generals in the People's Liberation Army rocket force unit,

China's investigation into its military seems to be ongoing, with more scalps taken.

In recent weeks, Miao Hua, another senior general who had been a member of

the Central Military Commission has been suspended, while reports abound that the country's current

defence minister, Dong Jun, is under investigation too. If suspended, Dong would be the third

consecutive defence minister that Xi has removed. To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, to lose one defence minister may be regarded a misfortune,

to lose three looks like carelessness.

So what is happening at the top of the PLA?

Is all of this movement a sign of Xi failing to get on top of corruption within the military

or, in fact, a sign that he is gearing up for serious military action, perhaps over Taiwan.

Just how successful have the military reforms that he instigated in 2015 been in the almost

decade since he started them.

Joining me on the podcast today is Oriana Skyler Mastro, an expert on the Chinese military

at Stanford University and author of Upstart,

how China became a great power.

But first, I spoke to Dmitri Savasopulo, US-China correspondent for the Financial Times.

Dmitri was the first report that Dongzheng was under investigation.

Dmitri, welcome to Chinese whispers.

So to start with, I wondered if you can tell us about what we know about what's happening at the top of the People's Liberation Army.

You recently scooped a very interesting revelation, I think, from American intelligence rather than from Chinese sources.

...