China sacks Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Wang Yi returns

New Delhi, July 25

China named Wang Yi as its new Foreign Minister on Tuesday, replacing Qin Gang, who has not been seen in public for a month.

Qin became one of China’s youngest foreign ministers at 57 when he was named to the post in December after serving as the ambassador to the US.

In a sense Wang Yi, 12 years older than Qin, has been reappointed to the post because he served as the Foreign Minister from 2018 to 2022 under Chinese President Xi Jinping, who had sought to infuse fresh blood by appointing new defence and foreign ministers. The international community took notice after Qin did not attend the ASEAN summit earlier this month with his ministry citing health reasons. Qin’s virtual sacking – he has not been named to any other post so far – comes at a time when the US is serenading China amid tensions in order to isolate Russia. Tensions with India have also failed to dissipate after the fatal Galwan valley clash.