Chinese leader Xi Jinping said last year was "very unusual and very extraordinary" and celebrated political "rectification."

The mainstay of Chinese carrier air wings was seen with a new anti-ship missile potentially capable of striking targets more than 1,000 kilometers away at supersonic speeds, according to recent media reports.

China is investigating two high-ranking military officials, Gen. Zhang Youxia and Gen. Liu Zhenli, for alleged breaches of Communist Party discipline and state law. This investigation, announced by the Defence Ministry,

The removal of Zhang and Liu reduces the CMC to its smallest size in history, leaving as its only members Xi, who heads the body, and Zhang Shengmin, a political commissar who leads the military’s anti-corruption watchdog and was promoted to CMC vice-chair in October.

Graduates of China's "Seven Sons" defense universities found perches for themselves at U.S. colleges and research labs, and many have access to valuable intellectual property.

China considers Taiwan its own territory and has threatened to take control of the island by force if necessary. China also has increased military pressure and, last month, launched large-scale military drills around Taiwan for two days after the U.S. government announced a major arms sales to Taiwan.