China’s Wang Yi sets out goals as foreign minister again, as Qin Gang’s name reappears on ministry website
- China will ‘resolutely safeguard’ its interests, Wang says in first remarks since replacing Qin, who has not been seen in public for a month
- Foreign ministry spokeswoman tells media not to ‘over-decode’ matters as Qin’s information reappears on official website
Top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi vowed to “resolutely safeguard” national interests, spelling out his goals in a statement on Friday – days after being reappointed as foreign minister.
Following the announcement of Qin’s abrupt dismissal just seven months into the job, records of his public engagements were swiftly scrubbed from the foreign ministry’s website.
Information on his meetings with foreign officials reappeared on the website on Friday, including his last recorded engagements on June 25 – when he met diplomats from Russia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. As of Friday afternoon, Qin’s name was still missing from the list of previous foreign ministers.
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Big political questions linger after China abruptly replaces its foreign minister
Asked about Qin’s records reappearing on the website, the ministry urged the media not to “over-decode” the information.
