They are the harshest sentences that Beijing has slapped on high-ranking military officials as part of President Xi Jinping's sweeping anti-corruption campaign.

Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu's sentences will be "commuted to life imprisonment" after a two-year reprieve, the Xinhua state news agency reported.

The ex-ministers, who served between 2018 and 2023, were also former members of China's powerful Central Military Commission, which oversees the military, and frequently appeared on television.

Wei was convicted of accepting bribes and Li was convicted of accepting and offering bribes, Xinhua said.

The pair were also stripped of their political rights for life as well as their personal property.