It is expected that the new Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, will face many difficult files, after his reappointment at the head of diplomacy in his country to succeed Chen Jang, who has not appeared in any public activity for three weeks, as speculation surrounds his health condition and his fate in the country. Known for his “political ambiguity”.
According to the newspaper “Financial TimesWang, 69, is a staunch nationalist and a “reliable old hand” for Chinese President Xi Jingbin.
The veteran diplomat was reappointed as foreign minister on Tuesday, replacing a rising star, Chen Gang, after a month-long mysterious absence that raised questions about transparency after only seven months in the job.
His “non-appearance” raises questions… Where is China’s foreign minister?
Western media reports have highlighted the absence of Chinese Foreign Minister Chen Jang, who has not appeared in any public activity for three weeks, pointing to speculation surrounding his health and fate in a country known for its “political ambiguity.”
Yesterday, Friday, Wang Yi made his first public statement since his reappointment as foreign minister, promising to strengthen partnerships and protect his country’s sovereignty, in a statement posted on the ministry’s website.
Wang said the ministry will strengthen partnerships with other countries, take an active part in global governance reform, and “resolutely safeguard China’s sovereignty, security, development and interests,” according to Reuters.
For Wang, the challenge he faces is to restore credibility to China’s diplomacy, as he must deal with the hectic workload without the help of his former colleague.
Apart from dealing with rising geopolitical tensions, Wang will have to prepare for his country’s potential leader to attend several important gatherings including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders’ summit in November in San Francisco where he may meet US President, Joe Biden.
In this regard, Minxin Bai, an academic and teacher at Claremont University in the United States, expects, in his interview with the newspaper, that the new Chinese foreign minister will face many obstacles, saying: “His real headache will revolve around how to manage some of these burning problems,” referring to China’s tense relations with China. United States, Europe, Japan, etc.
“A fox with wolf claws”
Wang is known as the “silver fox” because, unlike many older ruling Communist Party cadres, he does not dye his hair.
And he had held the position of foreign minister, from 2013 to 2022, before returning to sit in the same chair again, and here, Danny Russell, vice president for international security and diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute, tells the newspaper that “Wang is a well-known figure and is not a political interloper like His predecessor, Chen Zhang.
“But over time, he is no longer the elegant, open-minded diplomat we used to see… He now emerges as a more politically fit hero to embody (Chinese President) Xi Jinping’s ideas.”
Wang was born in the capital, Beijing, in 1953 and was forced to work on a farm during Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution.
After that, he joined the State Department, and spent some time at Georgetown University in Washington, before becoming his country’s ambassador to Japan.
Despite his humble social background, he was associated with elite diplomatic circles, as his father-in-law, Qian Jiadong, was an aide to the late Chinese President, Zhou Enlai.
Zhou famously said that “diplomatic personnel are the People’s Liberation Army (the Chinese army) in civilian clothes”, a message that Wang seems to have internalized.
In his book “China’s Civilian Army,” researcher Peter Martin quotes a speech Wang gave, in 2013, to new employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Strict and obedience to orders, but also needs … to serve the people like the People’s Liberation Army.”
In recent years, when the administration of former US President Donald Trump intensified its moves to confront China, the Foreign Ministry headed by Wang responded with “wolf warrior” diplomacy known for its bold rhetoric and escalation.
A former journalist who dealt with Wang said he practiced “a somewhat more subtle and scathing form of wolf warrior”.
“Europeans and Americans cannot distinguish between the Chinese, the Japanese and the South Koreans,” Wang said at a meeting earlier this month.
He continued, “No matter how yellow our hair is or how sharp our nose is, we cannot become Westerners, and we must know what our roots are.”
Meanwhile, Beijing and Washington are trying to revive dialogue. Wang was already the main interlocutor with the US National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, and about that, Russell says: “They are a very important channel of communication, but they are both very busy and Wang is twice as busy as he was before the dismissal ( Former Minister) Chen.
It remains to be noted that Wang Su will also be required to work with Xi to find another person to replace him, as he has already passed the retirement age, and therefore he will not be able to remain in office for a long time.
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2023-07-29 05:48:01
