Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang removed from office just months after taking on role

Mr Qin is replaced by his predecessor Wang Yi less than seven months after he was appointed to the post

Qin Gang had not been seen in public since June 25. Reuters

China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang was removed from office on Tuesday, state media reported, after a month's long disappearance from the public eye.

The report did not give a reason for Qin's removal which comes less than seven months after his appointment, but said President Xi Jinping signed a presidential order to enact the decision.

“China's top legislature voted to appoint Wang Yi as Foreign Minister … as it convened a session on Tuesday,” state media outlet Xinhua said.

“Qin Gang was removed from the post of Foreign Minister.”

Mr Qin was seen as a confidant of Mr Xi and many analysts attributed his fast rise through the diplomatic ranks to their relationship. Mr Qin has not been seen in public since June 25- when he met Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko in Beijing.

China has not commented on his lack of public appearances. His absence sparked furious speculation that he had been removed from office or was subject to an official investigation.

Mr Qin's duties had lately been taken on by China's top diplomat Wang Yi, who leads the ruling Communist Party's foreign policy and outranks Mr Qin in the government hierarchy.

Mr Qin had replaced Mr Wang as foreign minister in December last year.

Beijing also appointed Pan Gongsheng as the new governor of the People's Bank of China on Tuesday, after removing Yi Gang from the central bank governor post, state media reported.

Mr Xi met former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger in the Chinese capital last week.

Mr Kissinger played a crucial role in normalising relations between Washington and Beijing when he served in the Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford administrations.

He has urged the US to take a more conciliatory approach towards China as President Joe Biden's administration seeks to ease tensions between the two countries.