Defense Minister Li Shangfu has been sacked, as has China's foreign minister. Along with the post of Defense Minister, he has also been removed from the post of State Councillor. The matter was confirmed by the country's government on Tuesday (October 24).
Recently, China's former foreign minister Qin Gang has 'disappeared'. After some time, it is known that he has been removed from duty. Then last month, Defense Minister General Li Shangfu went 'missing' in the same way. He was not seen anywhere in public for more than a month.
On Tuesday (October 24), China's state broadcaster CCTV revealed that the defense minister has been removed as well as the foreign minister. However, no one has been appointed to this post yet. As a result, the post of Defense Minister is virtually vacant.
Li Shangfu was dismissed from the post of Minister of Defense as well as the State Council. Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who was sacked last July, was also removed from the post of State Councillor. The Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress approved the dismissal of the two top leaders.
Recently, a major reshuffle was made in the government of President Xi Jinping. Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Defense Minister Li Shangfu were dropped as part of it. But the matter is mysteriously kept secret by the government. Also, since they have not been seen in public for quite some time, they are reported as 'missing' in the media.
The matter has given rise to various discussions and rumors in foreign diplomatic circles. For example, Rah Emanuel, the US diplomat assigned to Japan, raised questions about this in the middle of last month.
On his 'X' handle (formerly Twitter), the US diplomat wrote, First, Foreign Minister Qin Gang went missing. After that, the Rocket Force commanders also went missing. And now Defense Minister Li Shangfu has not been seen in public for two weeks.
The US ambassador to Japan also said, who will win this unemployment race? China's Youth or Xi's Cabinet / #MysteryinBeijingBuilding'. According to the news, General Lee was last seen in public on August 29. He spoke at the third China-Africa Peace and Security Forum held in Beijing.
In the same month, reports emerged that President Xi Jinping had made major changes to his government. Two rockets force the general away. They are Li Yuchao, head of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Rocket Force Unit, and his deputy, Liu Guangbin.
They were in charge of overseeing the country's nuclear and missile systems. They too were not seen in public for months. The reshuffle comes as part of an anti-corruption drive, the South China Morning Post reported, a week after a new general was appointed to the rocket force.
China asked Israel to comply with international law
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Israel has the right to defend itself. But they must comply with international humanitarian law and ensure the protection of civilians. Chinese Foreign Minister said this in a phone conversation with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on Monday (October 23).
The Chinese foreign minister is scheduled to visit Washington soon. Before that, he had a telephone conversation with the Israeli Foreign Minister on Monday.
According to a report by China's state news agency Xinhua, in the first telephone conversation since the Hamas-Israel conflict began, Wang Yi said, "Every country has the right to defend itself." But international humanitarian law should be followed and civilians should be protected. He also reiterated China's support for the two-state solution to resolve the crisis.
Since the sudden operation of the Palestinian independence group Hamas on October 7, Israel has been carrying out indiscriminate and non-stop airstrikes on the Gaza Strip.
The United States and its Western allies have sided with Israel since the beginning of this conflict. They said, "Israel has the right to defend itself."
However, China immediately condemned Israel's indiscriminate airstrikes and called for an immediate end to these attacks. At the same time, Beijing emphasized on the establishment of an independent Palestinian state to solve the crisis.
Israel's relentless airstrikes on Gaza have now threatened to spill over into the Middle East. In such a situation, Beijing has deployed six warships in the Middle East last week.
There has been speculation about this. But Beijing said the warship deployment was part of regular patrol missions and goodwill visits to the Middle East. It is not meant to add to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict
According to US officials, the Chinese foreign minister will visit the US from next Thursday (October 26) to Sunday (October 29).
He will meet with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and the country's National Security Advisor Jack Sullivan during the four-day visit. However, it is not yet known whether he will meet US President Joe Biden.
US officials said that during the visit of the Chinese foreign minister, the US will put pressure on Beijing to take constructive initiatives on the Israel-Ukraine war.
However, just before the visit to the United States by the Chinese foreign minister, who called on the international community to establish a Palestinian state after the war, the Western bully "Israel has the right to defend itself" has given rise to new discussions. Some people say that China is changing its position on the issue of Palestine?
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