MADRID, 1 En. (PRESS EUROPE) –
Former Chinese foreign minister 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. This Sunday he published an article in Qiushi, the flagship magazine of the Communist Party of China, in which he outlined his foreign policy priorities for the coming years. This is, therefore, the first official signal that he has taken office.
In that publication, he promised to deepen ties with Russia, achieve closer high-level communication with Europe and correct the course of bilateral relations with the United States, ‘South China Morning Post’ newspaper reported.
The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China decided on Friday 30 December to remove Wang Yi from the post of foreign minister he has held since 2013. He will be replaced by the Chinese ambassador to the United States, Qin Gang.
Qin becomes foreign minister after a stint at the helm of the Chinese embassy in Washington, a post to which he was appointed in July 2021. During this period, Beijing’s policy towards Washington has oscillated between direct criticism and attempts at rapprochement.
The new minister, who in the past was the spokesman for this same department, has on some occasions deviated from Beijing’s official line, for example by allaying fears of a possible war with Taiwan or by admitting that China could have done more to prevent to Russia to invade Ukraine.
