Ousted Qin Gang remains state councillor but out of India-China SR level talks on boundary issues
The future of former Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang appears to be in a twilight zone as he continues to be the state councillor, a higher rank than that of foreign minister, but there is no change in the Special Representative on the India-China boundary issue with Wang Yi, Qin’s replacement, still tasked with the resolving the border issue.
Present foreign minister Wang is also an all-powerful member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China (CPC) as Director of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission, a post that outranks both the foreign minister and state councillor.
If this does not create enough confusion, Qin is listed as the state councillor on Chinese Government websites but with no defined work at present or perhaps in future. It is understood that the Chinese foreign ministry website was put down ostensibly for “maintenance” as diplomats posted in Beijing noticed a typical communist purge of all articles and references pertaining to Qin after he was dismissed from the job of Foreign Minister on July 25. Some of the articles and references were later restored as the Foreign Ministry website started functioning but not before the purge came to the notice of international diplomats posted in Beijing and by intelligence agencies.
Given the level of secrecy within the CPC and the inability of foreigners to penetrate into the authoritarian regime under Xi Jinping, the punishment given to Qin is rather unusual and goes beyond the rumour of the former foreign minister having an extramarital affair.
According to a former Indian foreign secretary and also an old China hand, the communists normally mete out such punishment to those party members who were either found collaborating with an enemy power against China or someone who had the temerity to challenge the paramount leader. “Since it is impossible for Qin to challenge President Xi, the other reason could be plausible and no marks for guessing the foreign power,” the former foreign secretary said.
Despite being behind the proverbial bamboo curtain, the Chinese economy is definitely not shining with manufacturing PMI down for the fourth straight month in July and intelligence inputs indicating a rise in food prices and inflation. Add to this a trillion US dollar worth of debt on account of Belt Road Initiative loans to some 150 odd countries, the rather dismal economic picture comes to light.
Under the circumstances, President Xi appears to be under pressure from his domestic audience to show that he is a man of action and committed to making China the next superpower. Was the removal of Qin a signal to others to perform or perish for the sake of the Chinese paramount leader? The answer to this lies in whether Qin is rehabilitated by the party leadership or permanently confined to the dustbin of CPC history.