JAKARTA (Reuters) – China’s top diplomat Wang Yi will attend an international gathering of foreign ministers in Indonesia this week, sources said, raising questions over the whereabouts of Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang who has not been seen for more than two weeks.
The three sources familiar with matter declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to media. Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China were scheduled to meet on Thursday, ahead of Friday’s East Asia Summit and ASEAN Regional Forum.
The foreign minister would normally represent China at the meetings, this time in Jakarta, Indonesia. Qin was last seen in public on June 25 in Beijing after meeting officials from Sri Lanka, Russia and Vietnam.
The Chinese foreign ministry did not respond to a query about Qin’s whereabouts.
His absence has not gone unnoticed.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin was asked last Friday about an article in U.S. political news website POLITICO that cited speculation Qin may have health issues. He said he had “not heard about” the report.
Qin was supposed to meet European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell last week in Beijing but the meeting was pushed back after China informed the EU that the dates were “no longer possible”, an EU spokesperson said.
The EU was informed of the postponement only two days before Borrell’s scheduled arrival on July 5, according to a source familiar with the plans.
(Reporting by Stanley Widianto in Jakarta, Yew Lun Tian in Beijing and Karen Lema Manila; Writing by Martin Petty and John Geddie; Editing)
