HONG KONG ¨C China¡¯s tough-talking foreign minister ¡ª in office for just over six months ¡ª has been absent from the public eye for more than three weeks despite a flurry of diplomatic activity in Beijing, triggering intense speculation over the reason for his unexplained disappearance.
Qin Gang, 57, is a seasoned and rapidly rising Chinese diplomatic star. He served as China¡¯s ambassador to the U.S. for about a year and a half from July 2021, then was handed the foreign ministry portfolio last December and named a State Councilor ¡ª the third highest-ranking position in China¡¯s central government ¡ª in March.
The concerns over Qin¡¯s disappearance were initially addressed by Foreign Ministry officials a week ago, when it was announced that he would skip an annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers meeting in Indonesia due to ¡°health reasons.¡± The ministry did not elaborate further, fueling public speculation that he had contracted COVID-19.
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