Head of the Worldwide Division of the Communist Occasion of China Liu Jianchao speaks throughout the thirteenth World Peace Discussion board in Beijing on July 3, 2025.
Wang Zhao | Afp | Getty Photographs
Liu Jianchao, a senior Chinese language diplomat broadly seen as a possible future international minister, has been taken away by authorities for questioning, the Wall Avenue Journal reported on Sunday.
Liu was taken away after returning to Beijing in late July from an abroad work journey, WSJ reported, citing individuals accustomed to the matter.
China’s State Council Info Workplace, which handles media queries for the Chinese language authorities, and the Chinese language Communist Occasion Worldwide Liaison Division didn’t instantly reply to Reuters’ request for remark.
Liu, 61, has led the Communist Occasion’s physique accountable for managing ties with international political events. Since taking the position in 2022, he has travelled to greater than 20 nations and met officers from greater than 160 nations.
Liu’s busy schedule, particularly his conferences with the previous U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington, stoked expectations that the previous ambassador and ministry spokesman was being groomed to be the subsequent international minister.
His detention marks the highest-level probe involving a diplomat since China ousted its former international minister and President Xi Jinping’s protégé, Qin Gang, in 2023 following rumours of an extramarital affair.
Born within the northeastern province of Jilin, Liu majored in English at Beijing International Research College and studied worldwide relations at Oxford earlier than taking over his first submit as a translator with the international ministry.
He has served in China’s mission to Britain and later as ambassador to Indonesia and the Philippines.
Throughout his time as ministry spokesman, he was identified for humorous off-the-cuff feedback whereas making a no-nonsense defence of China’s pursuits.
