Cao Gangchuan (; born December 1935) was vice chairman of the Central Military Commission and former

Minister of National Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. He was also state councilor and director of the PLA General Armament Department.

Biography

Cao Gangchuan was born in December 1935 in Wugang,

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

Province. For two years from 1954 he was a student of Nanjing No. 3 Artillery Ordnance Technical School and No.1 Ordnance Technical School. Then in 1956, he became a teacher of the No. 1 Ordnance Technical School. In the same year he attended the PLA Dalian Russian-Language School, before spending six years from 1957 at the Military Engineering School of the Artillery Corps of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. On returning in China in 1963 he was Assistant of Ammunition Division of Ordnance Department of PLA General Logistics Department, until 1969, when he became Assistant of Munitions Division in the same department. He was promoted in 1975 to a

staff officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military ...

and deputy director of General Planning Division of Military Equipment Department of PLA Headquarters of the General Staff. Then in 1982 he was made deputy director of Military Equipment Department. Steadily moving through the ranks of the PLA's hierarchy, in 1989 he was made director of Military Affairs Department of PLA Headquarters of the General Staff, then one year later, director of the Office of Military Trade of Central Military Commission. For four years from 1992 he was deputy chief of the general staff of PLA. He became a Minister for the first time in 1996 as Minister of Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense. Then in 1998 he gained control of the PLA General Armament Department. In 1998 he was made a member of the CPC Central Military Commission and director and secretary of Party committee of PLA General Armament Department. From 2002 to 2003 he was a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, vice chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission; director and secretary of Party committee of PLA General Armament Department. In March 2003, he was appointed as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China as well as state councilor. In March 2008, he was the director and secretary of Party committee of PLA General Armament Department. He was a member of the 15th CPC Central Committee, and was a member of the

16th CPC Central Committee The 16th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party was in session from 2002 to 2007. It held seven plenary sessions. It was set in motion by the 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, 16th National Congress of the Chinese Com ...

and member of the

16th CPC Politburo The 16th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party was elected by the 16th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party on November 15, 2002. It was nominally preceded by the 15th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party. This was the main van ...

References

Cao Gangchuan biography @ China Vitae, the web's largest online database of China VIPs

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cao, Gangchuan 1935 births Living people Ministers of National Defense of the People's Republic of China People from Pingdingshan People's Liberation Army generals from Henan Members of the 16th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party State councillors of China