China’s top legislative body dismisses Qin Gang as Foreign Minister, fuels speculation

CHINA: On Tuesday (25 Jul), China’s top legislative body made the decision to dismiss Qin Gang, a prominent ally of President Xi Jinping, from his role as Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The decision was taken during the fourth session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC).

In his place, Wang Yi, who serves as the director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China’s (CCP) Central Committee, was appointed as the new Foreign Minister.

President Xi Jinping signed a presidential order to effectuate the decision, China state media the Global Times reported.

Following this decision, Qin Gang became the shortest-serving Foreign Minister since China’s reform and opening-up began, serving from 30 December 2022 to 25 July 2023.

Qin Gang’s public appearances had been scarce for almost a month. As a former ambassador to Washington DC, he was seen as a close protégé of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and was expected to play a significant role in high-level visits by US officials.

However, his last public appearance was a meeting with his Sri Lankan counterpart in Beijing on 25 June. He did not participate in subsequent meetings with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in early July or during the ongoing visit by climate envoy John Kerry.

Notably, Qin was also replaced as the head of Beijing’s delegation to the ASEAN summit in Indonesia.

On 11 July, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin cited “health reasons” for Qin’s absence, but no further details were provided.

Despite the official announcement, the specific reason for Qin Gang’s dismissal was not stated in China’s official news.

As a result, various negative rumors have surfaced, including allegations of him having an extramarital child with a female anchor from a foreign TV station.

However, these rumors have yet to be verified by authoritative sources.

Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website removed all information about Qin Gang

Following the announcement, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, as of Wednesday (26 July), had completely removed all information about Qin Gang, including his previous press releases related to foreign affairs.

The Foreign Minister section now displays a message stating “Information being updated.”

Interestingly, a check on the Wayback Machine showed that news and information about Qin Gang’s activities were still accessible on the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website as of 24 July.

Qin Gang: From “wolf warrior” diplomat to Chinese Foreign Minister

Qin Gang was born in 1966 in the north-eastern city of Tianjin and is a devoted family man, married with a son, as revealed by public biographies.

He graduated from the International Politics Department, School of International Relations, with a major in International Politics. Qin joined the CCP party in 1986 and his diplomatic career commenced in 1988, served in the UK Embassy from 1995 until 1999.

From 2006 to 2014, Qin gained widespread recognition as one of China’s self-styled “wolf warrior” diplomats during two stints as a ministry spokesperson.

Between 2011 and 2018, Qin held prominent roles in the foreign ministry, including directorships in the information department and protocol department. During this time, he developed a close relationship with Xi Jinping, serving as an aide and organizing the leader’s trips.

In 2018, Qin was promoted to the position of Vice Minister of the Foreign Ministry.

Three years later, he assumed the significant role of Chinese Ambassador to the US, arriving in the country in July 2021 to take on the post.

As he stepped into the ambassadorial role, China-US relations were strained, particularly in the aftermath of the Trump presidency and ongoing disputes over sanctions. Qin was determined to mend the crucial US-China relationship.

During his 17 months as ambassador, Qin, who had more experience in relations with Western Europe than with the US, continued to build on his “wolf warrior” reputation.

In his first interview, he accused Taiwan’s government of seeking independence, cautioning that it could lead to a US-China military conflict, and he defended China’s actions in Xinjiang concerning the Uyghur issue.

He was appointed as Chinese foreign minister, according to a decision made by the 13th National People’s Congress Standing Committee, on 30 December last year.