Diplomat named foreign minister

China has appointed its ambassador to the United States, Qin Gang, as the new foreign minister.

The move was announced by a presidential decree signed by President Xi Jinping on Friday. The decision for this appointment was made at a meeting of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the nation's top legislature, on Friday.

Qin, 56, replaced Wang Yi, who had served as foreign minister since 2013. Qin was named China's ambassador to the US in 2021.