By TAKASHI FUNAKOSHI/ Correspondent
January 2, 2023 at 17:09 JST
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at a news conference in Beijing in March 2019 (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
BEIJING--Former Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has become the country's top diplomat, replacing Yang Jiechi as director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission.
Wang, 69, served as foreign minister for nearly 10 years and was the only diplomat promoted to the 24-member politburo, the party’s top decision-making body, during the Communist Party National Congress in October.
Wang became foreign minister in 2013 after serving as ambassador to Japan. He also doubled as a member of the State Council, the equivalent of a vice premier, since 2018.
It has become increasingly evident in China’s foreign policy in recent years that government officials perform working level tasks while the party crafts overall diplomatic strategy.
Qin Gang, 56 and a former ambassador to the United States, was appointed as foreign minister to replace Wang in the government’s announcement on Dec. 30.
In an essay Wang contributed to the foreign ministry’s website on Jan. 1, he pledged to firmly uphold his principles to help stabilize relations between great powers, referring to China-U.S. relations.
He also said that party general secretary Xi Jinping, the paramount leader of China, had mentioned that another Cold War had no place in the 21st century.
Turning to the hot topic of Taiwan, Wang reiterated Beijing’s position that it will not make any concessions on the issue, noting that it expressed strong opposition to a visit to the island last August by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He said that China demonstrated its firm determination to protect its sovereignty over the territory.
As for China’s relations with Russia, he said Beijing always stood ready to advance its partnership with Moscow, no matter what changes have occurred in the international situation.
Wang did not make direct mention of Japan in the essay. But he noted that the United States and a handful of countries are pushing for an Indo-Pacific strategy to create a small, closed and exclusive group.
China will counter any move to destroy the peace and stability of the region, he said.
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