The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured countless arm-like structures stretching across the spiral galaxy known as NGC 2608. (Image courtesy of NASA/VOA)
[People News] On April 1, 2026, a new chapter in human deep space exploration began. NASA's Artemis II mission was successfully launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. Four astronauts boarded the spacecraft, commencing a lunar orbit flight lasting approximately 10 days. This event marks the first time in over 53 years that the United States has sent humans back to the vicinity of the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972, signalling the end of a half-century gap in manned deep space exploration. The successful launch of Artemis II represents not only a technological milestone but also a strategic deterrent, sending a clear message to Beijing that the United States continues to maintain its leading capabilities in this new military frontier of space and will not easily cede its position.
In stark contrast, the CCP's manned lunar landing program has encountered unprecedented challenges. In 2023, Xi Jinping executed a purge of the senior leadership within the Rocket Force, indicating the onset of a systematic collapse within the aerospace military-industrial complex. Over the past three years, numerous high-ranking officials and experts within the CCP's military-industrial system have faced various crises, been dismissed, or gone missing. The aspiration for a lunar landing has been severely compromised as the turmoil and corruption within the CCP's military-industrial system, coupled with intense power struggles among military leaders, are relentlessly undermining Xi Jinping's lunar ambitions for 2030.
From Apollo to Artemis: The United States’ Strategic Deployment for Returning to the Moon
The launch of Artemis II marks a systematic return of U.S. deep space exploration in the post–Cold War era. After the Apollo program achieved six crewed lunar landings between 1969 and 1972, the United States shifted its focus to the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station, and crewed lunar missions fell into stagnation. In the early 21st century, with the rise of China’s Chang’e program and increased activity from countries like Russia, America’s global leadership in space has faced serious challenges.
To restore its dominance in space, the Artemis program was formally launched during Trump’s first term in 2017. The Biden administration has continued the program, and under Trump’s second term, the “America First” national strategy has been fully implemented. As a core component of this strategy, the program is being carried out in phases: an uncrewed lunar orbit test was completed in 2022; on April 1, 2026, a crewed lunar flyby is set to validate key technologies of the Orion spacecraft, including life support, navigation, and heat shield systems; around 2027, docking tests with commercial lunar landers are planned in low Earth orbit; by 2028, the goal is to achieve the first crewed lunar landing; thereafter, plans include establishing the Lunar Gateway space station and a long-term base, with at least one landing per year.
The Artemis program adopts a model of government leadership combined with commercial partnerships. Private companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin provide lunar landers and related services, while the government directs overall strategy and deployment. This new model demonstrates the flexibility, innovation, and market vitality of the American system.
The successful launch of Artemis II symbolises a major restoration of U.S. national strength, technological confidence, and global leadership. Its implementation advances U.S. national security and economic strategy, revitalises the American space industry, and lays the groundwork for lunar resource utilisation, the space economy, and future Mars exploration. It marks the beginning of a “new space era,” promotes the development of space science and physics, and opens new channels for international cooperation, embodying humanity’s shared spirit of exploring the universe. It will also inspire global public interest in space and drive technological spillovers that benefit all humankind.
More importantly, the most practical significance of the Artemis program lies in its geopolitical considerations. Through the Artemis Accords, the United States has established strategic partnerships with dozens of countries, including those in Europe, Canada, Japan, and India, to jointly formulate rules for lunar resource development and governance, aiming to build a “rules-based space order.” Water ice at the Moon’s south pole—usable for producing oxygen and fuel—is regarded as a strategic high ground. Whoever establishes a sustained presence first will control the “springboard” for future interplanetary exploration. From the perspective of U.S.-China competition, the launch of Artemis II is a direct response to China’s Chang’e program, signalling America’s formal advance into space and countering the Chinese Communist Party’s ambitions to dominate the future of space.
A Massive Corruption Scandal in China’s Space Sector: Officials Fall Before a Moon Landing Is Achieved
Xi Jinping’s ambitious crewed lunar program is being severely undermined by a wave of corruption in the military-industrial sector.
In 2023, a corruption scandal erupted within the Rocket Force, wiping out its top leadership, including former commanders Wei Fenghe, Li Yuchao, and Zhou Yaning. The investigation quickly expanded to the Central Military Commission’s Equipment Development Department, leading to the downfall of former Defence Minister Li Shangfu. Other generals who were dismissed or investigated include Zhang Zhenzhong, Zhang Yulin, Rao Wenmin, Lü Hong, Li Chuanguang, Sun Jinming, Wang Zhibin, and Zhang Fengzhong, among others.
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) and China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) are the core forces behind the crewed lunar program. The former is responsible for the Long March rockets, spacecraft, and probes, while the latter provides control systems and missile-related technologies. The list of fallen officials is striking: Wu Yansheng, former chairman and Party secretary of CASC, was stripped of his position in the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in December 2023 after overseeing key launch vehicle programs; Yuan Jie, former chairman and Party secretary of CASIC and an alternate member of the 20th Central Committee, was removed from office in April 2024 and has since disappeared; Liu Shiquan, a leading missile expert who served as CASIC general manager and later chairman of the Ordnance Industry Group, was also stripped of his CPPCC membership in April 2024; Wang Changqing, former deputy general manager of CASIC, lost his CPPCC membership in December 2023; Xu Dazhe, former Hunan Party secretary and former CASIC general manager, was stripped of his National People’s Congress delegate status in 2025; Zhang Hongwen, a senior official in Anhui Province and former CASIC executive, disappeared in late 2025 before being removed; Zhu Zhisong, a senior Shanghai official and former CASC executive, was also investigated in 2025.
In 2026, several academicians involved in radar, missile guidance, nuclear weapons, and high-power microwave technologies—fields closely tied to aerospace—were publicly named or disciplined, including Wei Yiyin, Wu Manqing, Zhao Xiangeng, and Yang Wei.
These corruption practices are typical examples of “feeding off the military-industrial complex,” including procurement fraud, evaluation manipulation, and quality inspection corruption. The Rocket Force’s procurement system has been reviewedย้อนหลัง nine years, with hundreds of suppliers and dozens of evaluation experts blacklisted, revealing deeply rooted systemic corruption. While Chinese authorities have never acknowledged that corruption directly delayed the crewed lunar program, the personnel upheaval has undoubtedly created management vacuums and operational disruptions. U.S. intelligence assessments suggest that such corruption has already disrupted the PLA’s 2027 modernisation goals, inevitably affecting aerospace and aviation sectors.
Economic Slowdown and Military Burden: China’s Space Race Risks Following the Soviet Path
The combination of military-industrial corruption and a sustained economic slowdown presents an irreconcilable structural contradiction for China’s high-intensity military buildup.
In 2026, China faces significant economic pressure: the real estate sector has yet to bottom out, local government hidden debt remains high, deflation risks persist, youth unemployment is elevated, and population ageing is accelerating. GDP growth targets have been lowered to around 4.5%–5%, domestic demand is weak, and the renminbi faces passive appreciation pressures. Meanwhile, rising global tariffs threaten exports—the only remaining engine of growth—with major uncertainty.
Against this backdrop, military spending continues to grow at around 7%. However, space programs as a core national military strategy require massive funding and talent—from heavy-lift rocket development and crewed spacecraft testing to lunar base preparation. Each step demands enormous resources, while the “black hole” of corruption remains immeasurable. Reports of “paper combat capabilities” in Chinese military operations in places like Venezuela and Iran have already raised concerns, placing Xi Jinping in a difficult position.
History may be repeating itself. During the Cold War arms race, especially in response to the U.S. Strategic Defence Initiative under President Reagan, the Soviet Union’s rigid planned economy, technological backwardness, and inefficiency ultimately led to fiscal collapse. The arms race became a catalyst for the Soviet Union’s disintegration.
Xi Jinping once lamented that “not one man stood up” during the Soviet collapse. Yet today, his own sweeping purges across the Party, government, and military have alienated large segments of officials and the armed forces. His personal security is even questioned, with reports suggesting he has stayed out of public view in Beijing for months. How many at the local, central, and military levels still genuinely follow his orders? Coupled with U.S. strategic deterrence, the Chinese Communist Party may be approaching its limits. Before achieving a crewed lunar landing, it may already be headed for the dustbin of history.
(First published by People News) △
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