China fires Foreign Minister Qin Gang – POLITICO

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang was sacked on Tuesday, in a rare political scandal engulfing a loyalist to President Xi Jinping.

Qin had been missing from public view for more than three weeks, fueling speculation about his future. The new foreign minister will be Qin’s predecessor, Wang Yi, according to state media CCTV.

The media report didn’t give a reason for the abrupt removal of Qin, who only took charge of the foreign ministry in December.

“The fourth session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People’s Congress, which took place at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on 25th July, voted to decide to remove Qin Gang from the post of foreign minister he concurrently held, and to appoint Wang Yi as the foreign minister,” CCTV said in a primetime broadcast on Tuesday. “President Xi Jinping signed a presidential order to effectuate the decision.”

Qin, 57, a former ambassador to the U.S., was swiftly promoted when Xi was forming a new team last year.

Qin’s Western counterparts have for the last few months started building a working relationship with him. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her Dutch counterpart, Wopke Hoekstra, were among those to have met with Qin in Beijing following the city’s reopening after the coronavirus pandemic.

The earliest sign of Qin’s disappearance came when Beijing canceled a visit by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell earlier this month, with EU diplomats initially told that the Chinese official “tested positive” for coronavirus.

The post of foreign minister, while crucial in external engagement, is not the most important role in the Chinese diplomatic system.

Wang, 69, who was reappointed on Tuesday, has been director of the Communist Party’s Foreign Affairs Commission while also serving as a Politburo member, essentially making him the most senior Chinese diplomat.

Initial speculation that Qin would be replaced by Deputy Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu or by Liu Jianchao, head of the International Liaison Department of the Communist Party, didn’t materialize, underlining Beijing’s preference for continuity.

Qin, for now, seemingly retains the title of State Councilor. Beijing initially said he was missing from key diplomatic events due to “health reasons.”

This article has been updated.