New commander of Hong Kong PLA garrison named

Lieutenant General Wang Xiaojun, currently a deputy commander of the People Liberation Army’s Shenyang military command, has succeeded Lieutenant General Zhang Shibo as commander of the Hong Kong garrison, a Defence Ministry spokesman confirmed on Friday.

The 60-year-old Hebei native spent three decades in the Guangzhou Military Area Command before beginning a three-year stint as deputy commander of the Hong Kong garrison in September 1999.

He was later promoted to commander of the Hainan provincial military region and served in different positions with the Guangzhou command. In 2010, he was elevated to deputy commander of the Shenyang Military Area Command.

Zhang, the man Wang succeeds in Hong Kong, will replace General Fang Fenghui as commander of the Beijing military area.