Former Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s Downfall: A Story of Scandal and Demotion

Foreign ⁤Minister Qin Gang (front row, right)⁢ meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko in ⁤June last year. Former Minister Qin has not​ appeared in public since that day.

The Washington ⁤Post⁣ reported that former Chinese‍ State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who has not⁤ been seen in public for over a year‌ since late June last year, has been demoted to an unimportant position at a‌ publishing company under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to two former U.S.⁤ officials, Qin Gang was given a⁣ low-level position at the World Knowledge Publishing House, an affiliate of the Chinese Foreign Ministry. One official stated, “He has lost⁢ trust ‍but is out ⁤of ⁢trouble. He is ⁢not going to ⁤jail, but his career is over.” However, it is unclear whether he ‍actually goes to work at the publishing house.

The reason ​behind Qin Gang’s demotion ⁢is ⁤reportedly an alleged affair with Hong Kong TV anchor Fu‍ Xiaotian. After his disappearance from public⁣ view, rumors spread that he had an affair with Fu and that she had given birth to an illegitimate child in the United States. Although there were ⁤also​ rumors that Fu passed secrets to foreign intelligence agencies, these were not confirmed.

Gao Zikai, a​ former interpreter for Deng Xiaoping and now the deputy director‍ of the China Globalization Think Tank, stated on an Al Jazeera‍ talk show that Qin Gang would never be able to ⁣make public appearances again. “He is‍ somewhere in China,” Gao said,⁢ “You will never see him.”

Qin Gang ‌is not ‍the first high-ranking Foreign Ministry official to be demoted to‍ the World Knowledge Publishing Company. In ⁢2005, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Shen Guofang⁢ was suddenly dismissed ⁤and moved to the World Knowledge Publishing Company as an editor ⁣due to rumors of an affair with a Hong Kong journalist. Interestingly, ⁢Qin Gang, who was the Foreign Ministry spokesperson at the ⁣time of⁢ Shen Guofang’s demotion, responded to reporters’ questions by saying, “It’s a routine ⁣matter.”

Qin Gang, once considered⁢ a symbol ‌of China’s “wolf warrior diplomacy,” suddenly disappeared from public view after meeting with the foreign ministers of Vietnam and Sri Lanka in Beijing in June last ⁤year. A month later,‍ the⁣ Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress relieved him⁤ of his duties as foreign minister without any explanation.

In November, he was dismissed from ‌his position as a State Councilor, and in February, he was ordered to resign ‌from his‍ position as a representative of the Tianjin Municipal⁤ People’s Congress. However, the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee‌ of​ the Communist Party of China announced that Qin Gang’s resignation ‍had been ​accepted, and he was relieved of ​his duties as a member ⁤of the Central Committee, signaling a‌ “soft landing” for the former minister.

In​ contrast, former State Councilor and Minister​ of National Defense Li​ Sang-fu, who‍ was stripped of his party membership at the 3rd Plenary Session, has not faced any punishment. ‍Li was stripped of his party ⁣membership and rank of general⁢ at ⁤the Politburo meeting ​in June for “losing the ‌party’s principles” and was then transferred to the‌ military prosecutor’s office.