 "Who is China’s new foreign minister Qin Gang? What can India and US expect from him?")
China has a new foreign minister – and with it perhaps a new outlook towards relations with India and the United States. Qin Gang has been appointed foreign minister in place of Wang Yi, who served for a decade and has now moved up the ladder to the Chinese politburo. Said to be a confidant of Xi Jinping, Qin was previously ambassador to the United States. Let’s take a closer look at Qin, one of the youngest foreign ministers in the history of China: Who is Qin? As per SCMP, the 56-year-old was appointed ambassador to the US in July 2021. Described as one of the ‘toughest voices in the foreign ministry,’ his appointment comes in the wake of his being named to China’s powerful Central Committee in October. Qin as ambassador vociferously defended China over Xinjiang (where it is accused of human rights violations), Hong Kong, and Taiwan. As per Bloomberg, Qin displayed a ‘different side’ of Chinese diplomacy – shooting basketballs at a Washington Wizards game and riding a Tesla with Elon Musk. As chief protocol officer between 2014 and 2018, Qin managed many of Xi’s exchanges with foreign leaders, as per Current Affairs. [caption id=“attachment_11918732” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]
Chinese pesident Xi Jinping. AP[/caption] According to NPR, Qin was spokesperson and deputy director-general of the Foreign Ministry’s Information Department between 2005 and 2010.
He became a prominent example of China’s so-called ‘wolf warrior" diplomacy in his dealing with reporters.
Asked about Guns N’ Roses’ album Chinese Democracy in 2008 by a member of the press, Qin responded, “Many people don’t like this kind of music because it’s too raucous and noisy.” “I’m guessing that you’re a mature adult, aren’t you?” What can India and US expect? Qin, in an op-ed piece for US magazine The National Interest prior to his appointment hinted at improved ties with New Delhi. Qin in an article titled “How China Sees the World”, referred to India-China border issues and said, “both sides are willing to ease the situation and jointly protect peace along their borders.” When it comes to the United States, things might be a little more difficult. Wang in the article naming Qim as foreign minister said China would establish guidelines on US relations and “correct course,” as per Bloomberg.
Wang, of course, did not elaborate further.
But in the same op-ed in The National Interest, Qin cast blame on the United States for challenging the status quo on Taiwan, and Japan for altering the status quo in the South China Sea. “China’s development means a stronger force for peace, not a growing power poised to ‘break the status quo’, as some call it. The tension across the Taiwan Strait was not created by the Chinese mainland breaking the status quo, but by ‘Taiwan independence’ separatists and external forces continually challenging the status quo of ‘one China’,” Qin wrote. “In the case of the East China Sea, it was Japan who attempted to ’nationalize’ Diaoyu Dao ten years ago, altering the “status quo” between China and Japan by agreeing to put aside differences. In the South China Sea, the status quo is that regional countries are consulting on a code of conduct that will lead to meaningful and effective rules for the region,” he wrote. On Thursday, Qin warned Washington that it could face “military conflict” with Beijing over the future status of Taiwan. Last July, he told NPR after his arrival as Chinese ambassador, at a time of bipartisan discontent with Beijing, that any idea of “changing China” was always “an illusion”. “If the Taiwanese authorities, emboldened by the United States, keep going down the road for independence, it most likely will involve China and the United States, the two big countries, in a military conflict,” Qin said. But Qin seemed to soften his rhetoric on Tuesday, tweeting that he had made ‘many friends’ in the US and that he was “deeply impressed by so many hard-working, friendly and talented American people that I met.”
An insight into Qin’s thinking can be gleaned from a 2013 interview.
“Diplomacy is complex and systematic work. It can be hard with some softness, or soft with some hardness,” he said. “It can also be both hard and soft. As time and situation change, the two may transform into each other,” Qin said as per NPR. What do experts say? That Qin is facing a host of challenges. Sun Yun, director of the China Program at the Stimson Center in Washington, DC, told NPR, “His top priority would be to improve relations with the US, given the lingering domestic sentiment that is anti-US [Secretary of State Antony] Blinken will be visiting China in two weeks. He also needs to improve relations with the developed countries in general to help China’s economic recovery. Then he also needs to deal with Russia and North Korea.” “Given that the Biden administration is facing a more divided government with Republicans set to take control of the House, there will be a tougher tone inside the House of Representatives toward China, including more provocative words and deeds on the Taiwan question,” Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times. NPR quoted Qin as saying in his first statement as foreign minister that Beijing will offer “Chinese wisdom, Chinese initiatives and Chinese strength.” It remains to be seen how Qin fares in office. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .