The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China is the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China and one of the country's top and most important State Council posts. Officially, the minister is nominated by the premier of the State Council, who is then approved by the National People's Congress or its Standing Committee and appointed by the president.
The minister usually is also a member of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and a state councillor. The Minister is the second-highest ranking diplomat in China after the director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission. The current minister is Wang Yi, who concurrently serves as the director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission.
History The post was initially established after the proclamation of the People's Republic of China on 1 October 1949 as the minister of foreign affairs of the Central People's Government, with Zhou Enlai being appointed as both the minister and the premier.
List of officeholders PortraitNameTerm of officeImportant offices held during tenurePremier Took office Left office TermMinister of Foreign Affairs of the Central People's Government 1 Zhou Enlai周恩来 1 October 1949 28 September 1954 Premier of the State Council Zhou EnlaiMinister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China 1 Zhou Enlai周恩来28 September 195411 February 1958Premier of the State CouncilChairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative ConferenceVice Chairman of the Chinese Communist PartyZhou Enlai 2 Chen Yi陈毅 11 February 1958 6 January 1972 Vice Premier of the State CouncilHead of the Central Foreign Affairs Leading GroupVice Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative ConferenceVice Chairman of the CCP Central Military Commission 3 Ji Pengfei姬鹏飞 6 January 1972 18 November 1973 Head of the Party Core Group of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 4 Qiao Guanhua喬冠華 18 November 1973 2 December 1976 Zhou EnlaiHua Guofeng 5 Huang Hua黄华 2 December 1976 19 November 1982 Vice Premier of the State CouncilState Councillor Hua GuofengZhao Ziyang 6 Wu Xueqian吴学谦 19 November 1982 12 April 1988 Secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the Ministry of Foreign AffairsState CouncillorDeputy Head of the Central Foreign Affairs Leading Group Zhao Ziyang 7 Qian Qichen钱其琛 12 April 1988 18 March 1998 Vice Premier of the State CouncilState Councillor Li Peng 8 Tang Jiaxuan唐家璇 18 March 1998 17 March 2003 Secretary of the Party Committee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zhu Rongji 9 Li Zhaoxing李肇星 17 March 2003 27 April 2007 Wen Jiabao 10 Yang Jiechi杨洁篪 27 April 2007 16 March 2013 State Councillor 11 Wang Yi王毅 16 March 2013 30 December 2022 State CouncillorMember of the CCP PolitburoLi Keqiang 12 Qin Gang秦刚 30 December 2022 25 July 2023 Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of the Ministry of Foreign AffairsState Councillor Li Qiang13Wang Yi王毅25 July 2023IncumbentMember of the CCP PolitburoDirector of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission
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