U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel floated rumors about the disappearance of China¡¯s foreign minister and other top officials in a social media post that risks undermining Biden administration efforts to ease tensions with Beijing.
Emanuel, a former White House chief of staff, posted a comment on Elon Musk¡¯s X ¡ª with the hashtag #MysteryInBeijingBuilding ¡ª that riffed on speculation about recent absences from the public eye of top ministers and head of the country¡¯s rocket force, while also highlighting the high youth-unemployment rate under President Xi Jinping.
¡°President Xi¡¯s cabinet lineup is now resembling Agatha Christie¡¯s novel And Then There Were None,¡± Emanuel wrote. ¡°First, Foreign Minister Qin Gang goes missing, then the Rocket Force commanders go missing, and now Defense Minister Li Shangfu hasn¡¯t been seen in public for two weeks. Who¡¯s going to win this unemployment race? China¡¯s youth or Xi¡¯s cabinet?¡±
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