Dong Jun (diver)

Dong Jun (; born in 1961) is a Chinese admiral ('' shangjiang'') of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLA) who has served as the 14th Minister of National Defense since December 2023.

He served as the Commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy from September 2021 to December 2023. On 29 December 2023, he was appointed as the Minister of National Defense to replace Li Shangfu who was removed from office two months prior to his appointment in October 2023. He is the first Minister of National Defense from the PLA Navy.

Biography

In 1978, Dong was admitted to the Dalian Naval Academy of the Navy. After graduation, he began his service with the Navy in 1979. He has successively served as the head of the military training department of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Naval Command, the deputy chief of staff of the Beihai Fleet, and the commander of the Navy's 92269 unit.

In 2013, Dong was appointed deputy commander of East Sea Fleet, and held that office until December 2014, when he was appointed deputy chief of staff of the People's Liberation Army Navy. In January 2017, he was promoted to become deputy commander of Southern Theater Command. In March 2021, he became deputy commander of the People's Liberation Army Navy, rising to commander in August 2021. He was named as the commander of the PLA Navy in September 2021. He was succeeded as commander by Hu Zhongming in December 2023.

He was promoted to the rank of rear admiral ('' shaojiang'') in July 2012, vice admiral ('' zhongjiang'') in July 2018 and admiral ('' shangjiang'') in September 2021.

Minister of National Defense

On 29 December 2023, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress appointed Dong as the Minister of National Defense, making Dong the first defense minister to come from a naval background. The fact the Admiral has a military, rather than a political background made his appointment surprising. Political scientist Wen-Ti Sung, the selection of Dong as the defense minister was possibly a sign of ongoing purges within the PLA Rocket Force and the Central Military Commission's Equipment Development Department.

On 31 January 2024, Dong met with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu via teleconference, his first international engagement. During the meeting, Dong stated the militaries of Russia and China should be bolstering mutual trust and expanding cooperation to “elevate the relations between the two militaries to a higher level.” According to the transcript of the meeting released by the Russian Defense Ministry, Dong stated that China would continue to support Russia on the ' Ukraine issue', and despite pressure from the United States and the European Union, "China will not abandon its established policies and the outside world will not interfere with normal cooperation between China and Russia." When asked about Dong's statements at a press briefing, Foreign Ministry of China spokesperson Wang Wenbin stated that China's position remains unchanged and does not provide military aid to either side of the conflict.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dong, Jun
Living people
Commanders of the People's Liberation Army Navy
1963 births
People from Yantai
People's Liberation Army generals from Shandong
Ministers of National Defense of the People's Republic of China
Dalian Naval Academy alumni
Delegates to the 14th National People's Congress
Delegates to the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party
Members of the 20th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party