Xi Jinping leads early Politburo meeting to signal anti-corruption drive ahead of plenum

China’s Communist Party convened an early monthly Politburo meeting on Friday to review a key internal inspection report, doubling down on its high-pressure anti-corruption campaign ahead of a major party conclave next week.

Chaired by President Xi Jinping, the now 21-member Politburo met on Friday – earlier than its traditional end-of-month schedule – to discuss a comprehensive report on the seventh round of inspections by the 20th Central Committee.

The latest inspection is a major internal anti-corruption sweep focused specifically on top-level central party and government organs. Launched in April, 15 central inspection teams carried out routine inspections across 36 vital central state institutions, including core political, legal and government ministries.

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The meeting on Friday called for the “stern rectification” of problems uncovered within central government and state organs, demanding a sustained high-pressure posture against corruption and an unyielding commitment to strict party governance, according to state news agency Xinhua.

The central authorities should “strictly fulfil the political responsibility for managing and governing the party, implement all tasks of full and rigorous self-governance of the party with higher standards and more concrete measures, maintain a high-pressure stance against corruption, strictly adhere to a rigorous tone through to the end, and build politically sound agencies with a clean and healthy atmosphere,” the report said.

Plenary sessions of the Central Committee, the upper echelon of China’s ruling Communist Party, are major milestones on the country’s political calendar. This month’s session is attracting global attention as the world’s second-largest economy navigates complex external tensions and seeks an increasingly prominent role in global affairs.

The high-stakes political gathering is widely expected to focus on tightening party governance, reinforcing internal discipline and demanding absolute political loyalty.

Central and state agencies were urged during Friday’s meeting to serve as the “first phalanx” in upholding the authority of the Central Committee and enhancing their political judgment and execution while taking on greater responsibility to manage risks and balance development with security, according to Xinhua.

The anti-corruption drive comes against the backdrop of unprecedented scrutiny targeting the party’s elite. Of the present 205 full Central Committee members, 35 have either been placed under investigation or stripped of their legislative seats in China’s top legislature, according to calculations by the South China Morning Post.

Many of those targeted have been cited for political disloyalty to the central leadership.

Work is under way on a power reshuffle that will be finalised during the party congress in autumn 2027, when a new Central Committee will be formed and major leadership changes announced.

In keeping with previous party conventions, preparations for next year’s party congress are expected to already be advancing, including multiple rounds of screening hundreds of officials, a process that will last until summer.