Qin Gang Appointed New Chinese Foreign Minister

China National Radio has announced that Qin Gang, the Chinese ambassador to the United States, has been appointed the new Chinese foreign minister.

• Bloomberg: "China appointed its ambassador to the US, Qin Gang, as the new foreign minister, as the Asian nation shows signs of moving back to a lower-key diplomatic strategy after a growing backlash against its confrontational style."
• Semafor reported the news earlier today, writing that Qin has emerged "as a key player in Beijing. He’s recently had sitdowns with [US] Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and [US] Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who I’m told worked to make a real personal connection while meeting in his office at the State Department."
• Qin's appointment has been viewed in the West as a conciliatory move and follows Chinese President Xi Jinping drive to bolster relations with Western leaders with a string of bilateral meetings at the G20 summit in Bali, including a meeting with US President Joe Biden.
• Outgoing Foreign Minister Wang Yi will take a position on Politburo and is expected to head foreign policy for Beijing after the retirement of Yang Jiechi.