China’s New Foreign Minister Vows for Bettering China-U.S. Ties in New Era

Qin Gang, Antony Blinken Exchange Phone Call to Foster US-China Relations

Beijing: Newly appointed Foreign Minister of China Qin Gang, 56, has pledged to continue support for bettering the China-U.S. relations in new era.

The four decades old US-China relations have been marred by trade war, and geopolitical tensions in the Asia-Pacific.

Qin made these remarks in a thread of posts shared on Twitter on Monday recalling his time in Washington in 2021 “at a time of severe challenges for China-U.S. relations.”

“During my tenure here, I have been working to implement the common understandings of our two Presidents, serve as a bridge and bond of communication between the two countries, and explore the right way to get along for China and the U.S. in the new era,” Qin said.

Reflecting on his diplomatic endeavors in USA, he said “he had visited 22 U.S. states, went to government agencies, Congress, think tanks, enterprises, factories, ports, farms, schools and sport fields, and made many friends across the country to better understand USA”

“I have been deeply impressed by so many hard-working, friendly and talented American people that I met,” he noted.

Also, he thanked the American public for the “strong support and assistance” given to him and the Chinese embassy during his stay in the U.S., which started in July 2021.

Qin Gang, a former Chinese ambassador to the United States, was appointed as China’s new foreign minister on Friday, replacing Wang Yi who is expected to play a bigger role in foreign policy affairs of China under the leadership of Xi Jinping.

The 56-year-old Qin has pledged to continue to supporting the growth of bilateral relations between China and the United States.

“Going forward, I will continue to care about and support the growth of China-U.S. relations, encourage dialogue, mutual understanding and affinity between the two peoples, work for mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation between our two countries, and make my due efforts for the wellbeing of the two peoples and for world peace, stability and development,” he said.

Qin was the 11th Chinese ambassador to the United States. He assumed office in July 2021.

Prior to his ambassadorship, he was Chinese vice foreign minister.

The new foreign minister will contribute to maintaining and developing relations between China and major countries in the future, said Wu Yong, a professor at the School of International Studies at Peking University while highlighting the Qin’s performance as an ambassador.

In his first comments as foreign minister, Qin said China’s diplomacy remains committed to peace, development, cooperation and delivering mutual benefit, and will press for a new model of international relations based on mutual respect, fairness, justice and win-win cooperation.

From the US side, Secretary of State Antony Blinken in his phone call with Qin on Sunday also vowed to increase efforts to maintain open lines of communication in a telephone call with Qin.

By: Muhammad Arif