Politics

A top US diplomat has questioned the absence of China's defence minister Li Shangfu, renewing speculation of a possible corruption purge.

General Li has been not seen in public for about two weeks and has reportedly missed several meetings.

Rahm Emanuel, the US envoy to Japan, speculated on Mr Li's absence, tweeting that the "unemployment rate" in the Chinese government was very high.

Mr Li's absence follows recent axings of several top military officials.

Citing sources in the US and China, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Mr Li is being removed from his post.

It also comes months after foreign minister Qin Gang disappeared from public view. Mr Qin's sudden absence and replacement in July has still not been fully explained.

In Gen Li's case too, the Chinese government has not said much. When asked about it earlier this week, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman had reportedly said she was "not aware of the situation".

Gen Li's last public appearance was three weeks ago - on 29 August - in Beijing at a security forum with African nations. It is not unusual for defence ministers to be absent from the public view for a few weeks.

An aerospace engineer who began his career at a satellite and rocket launch centre, Gen Li has had a smooth ascent through the ranks of the military and Chinese political elite.

Just like Mr Qin, he is said to be a favourite of President Xi Jinping. He is also the second cabinet minister and state councillor, after Mr Qin, to have gone missing in recent months.

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Speculation of a military corruption purge first began to mount online in early August when two generals in China's rocket forces, which control land-based missiles, were replaced. The president of the army's military court was also removed months after his appointment.

In tweets last week and on Friday, Mr Emanuel highlighted Gen Li's absence while referring to the disappearance of Mr Qin and the other military officials.

He also pointed out that Gen Li had been a "no-show" for a trip to Vietnam and a Beijing meeting with Singapore's navy chief recently, alleging that Gen Li could have been placed on house arrest.

The outspoken ambassador, who is known for his colourful tweets, compared the absence to the Agatha Christie mystery And Then There Were None and Shakespeare's Hamlet. "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark," Mr Emanuel tweeted on Friday.

A Reuters report citing Vietnamese officials said Mr Li had abruptly pulled out of a meeting last week with Vietnamese defence leaders who were told the Chinese general had a "health condition".

Singapore's navy chief Sean Wat had visited China and met military officials last week. The BBC has asked the Singaporean navy to confirm Mr Emanuel's allegation.

Mr Qin's disappearance, now coming to three months, was also chalked up to "health conditions" and has been widely speculated to be linked to a corruption purge as well. He has since been removed from his post.