China’s new Foreign Minister Qin Gang and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a telephone conversation Sunday on relations between the two nations.
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According to a statement posted on China’s foreign ministry’s official website, Qin said goodbye to Blinken and recalled his frank, insightful and constructive meetings with the secretary during his tenure as Chinese ambassador to the United States.
The incoming foreign secretary told Blinken that he hopes to maintain a close working relationship with the US secretary of state and foster better relations between the two nations.
The two sides also exchanged New Year’s greetings during the call, the statement said.
new chancellor of #ChinaQin Gang, spoke on the phone with the Secretary of State for #UNITED STATES OF AMERICAAntony Blinken, and thanked several frank, insightful and constructive meetings and said he hopes to maintain working relations to enhance China-US ties pic.twitter.com/VL3p1rbn6c
— Iramsy Peraza (@IramsyteleSUR)
January 2, 2023
Qin, 56, was named the new foreign minister on Saturday by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s legislative body.
During the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC, ruling), held last October, Qin joined the Central Committee, the group of about 200 members (plus about 170 substitutes) that leads the formation.
The new foreign minister took over as ambassador to Washington in 2021, at a time when US-China relations were deteriorating after then-President Donald Trump launched a trade war with the Asian country in 2018 .
Wang Yi has become Chinese President Xi Jinping’s top foreign policy adviser, replacing veteran Yang Yiechi, who resigned at the age of 72.
Yi will head the Directorate of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party.
