Chi Haotian

Chi Haotian (simplified Chinese: 迟浩田; traditional Chinese: 遲浩田; pinyin: Chí Hàotián; born 9 July 1929), also spelled as Chih Hao-tien, is a retired general of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. He served as Minister of National Defence from 1993 to 2003.

In this Chinese name, the family name is Chi.
General
Chi Haotian
迟浩田
Chih Hao-tien
Chi Haotian in July 2000
Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission
In office
Party Commission:
28 September 1995 – 15 November 2002
State Commission:
28 March 1993 – 5 March 2003
ChairmanJiang Zemin
State Councilor of the People’s Republic of China
In office
29 March 1993 – 17 March 2003
PremierLi Peng
Zhu Rongji
8th Minister of National Defense
In office
29 March 1993 – 17 March 2003
PremierLi Peng
Zhu Rongji
Preceded byQin Jiwei
Succeeded byCao Gangchuan
Head of the General Staff Department of the People's Liberation Army
In office
28 November 1987 – 28 October 1992
Preceded byYang Dezhi
Succeeded byZhang Wannian
Personal details
Born (1929-07-09) 9 July 1929
Zhaoyuan, Shandong, Republic of China
Political partyChinese Communist Party
Military service
Allegiance China
Branch/service PLA Ground Force
Years of service1944–2003
Rank General
Battles/warsChinese Civil War
Korean War
Awards Order of Liberation (3rd Class; 1955)

Early life

Chi was born 9 July 1929 in Zhaoyuan, Shandong, Republic of China. In October 1946 he joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Military career

Chi was recruited to the army in July 1945, and graduated from the synthesis department of Military Academy of PLA. During the Korean War, he served as the battalion instructor and deputy director of a regimental political department within the 27th Corps of the People's Volunteer Army in North Korea. For his valor during the war, he received a "Class-One" commendation.[1][2]

In 1973, he became the vice political commissar of Beijing Military Region, and vice editor in chief of a prominent newspaper "People's Daily". He later became vice director of the general staff department of PLA and the director of political department under it, the political commissar of Jinan Military Region, and the head of the general staff department of PLA as well as the secretary of CCP's committee there. He was elected as a member of central military commission in 1988.

In May and June 1989, Chi played an important role in directing the military's enforcement of martial law in Beijing to suppress the Tiananmen Square Protests in the national capital. As chief of staff he instructed the commanding officers of the Beijing, Shenyang, and Jinan Military Districts to "finalize the name list of every group army division scheduled to advance into Beijing and their exact times of departure and arrival, as well as details regarding primary duties", according to the "Daily report" (Meiri yibao) from the Central Military Commission Office, dated 19 May 1989. This military buildup resulted in the massacre, which took place on 4 June that year.

In 1993 Chi became a state council member and the Minister of National Defense until 2003. He was also the director of the Law of National Defense Draft Commission. He was elected to be vice chairman of the central military commission of the CCP in September 1995, and CMC of the state in December that year. On 19 October 1999, after meeting with Syrian Defence Minister Mustafa Tlass in Damascus, Syria, to discuss expanding military ties between China and Syria, Chi then flew directly to Israel and met with Ehud Barak, the then prime minister and Defence Minister of Israel where they discussed military relations. Among the military arrangements, was a 1 billion dollar Israeli Russian sale of military aircraft to China, which were to be jointly produced by Russia and Israel.[3]

He was elected as a member of CCP's 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th Central Committee's, and a Politburo member at 15th Congress. He was awarded First-class honor in 1952, and Third-Class Liberation medal in 1985. He was made general in 1988. Chi was reportedly one of three party elders who reprimanded President Xi Jinping at the Beidaihe meeting in 2023.[4]

Personal life

Chi was married to Jiang Qingping, who worked as a nurse at a People's Liberation Army hospital, in 1956. The couple had a son and daughter. Jiang passed away on 4 June 2023, at the age of 90.[5] Chi's son Chi Xingbei is a major general in the People's Liberation Army who previously served as the political commissar of the army logistics department.[6]

References
  1. Mulvenon, James. "Chi Haotian: A Political Biography" (PDF). China Leadership Monitor, No.1 Part 2 (Hoover Institution). Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  2. "Sino-North Korean Military Relations: Comrades-in-Arms Forever?". The Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security. 17 June 2004. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  3. "China defense minister visits Israel". Archived 30 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine World Tribune. Thursday, 21 October 1999
  4. Nakazawa, Katsuji (21 September 2023). "Analysis: Military elder put silent pressure on Xi at Beidaihe". Nikkei Asia.
  5. Yue, Huairang (5 June 2023). "离休干部、迟浩田上将夫人姜青萍逝世，享年90岁". The Paper. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  6. Yue, Huairang (12 September 2018). "冷少杰少将出任陆军后勤部政委，迟星北少将不再担任". The Paper. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
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