Spokesman gets new position

Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang announced at Friday's regular news conference that he would no longer hold the position as a spokesman and will soon take up a new post.

Geng, who was also deputy director-general of the ministry's information department, made his debut as the 30th spokesperson of the ministry in September 2016.

"I'd like to extend my sincere thanks to the care, help, support and encouragement all of you have offered to me in the past nearly four years," Geng said.

As a Chinese diplomat, wherever he is, he will continue to tell the stories of－and voices from-China and contribute to facilitating mutual understanding between China and the world as well as deepening the friendship between the Chinese people and people across the world, he said.

Geng has hosted about 400 news conferences and won widespread praise from journalists and the public for his professional performance and personal charisma.

Born in 1973, the Beijing native graduated from China Foreign Affairs University and Tufts University in the United States.