China's defence minister, not seen in weeks, skipped Vietnam meet

  • 📰 ChannelNewsAsia
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 36 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 18%
  • Publisher: 66%

Singapore Headlines News

Singapore Latest News,Singapore Headlines

BEIJING: Chinese defence minister Li Shangfu abruptly pulled out of a meeting with Vietnamese defence leaders last week, three officials with direct knowledge of the matter said, amid questio

The abrupt cancellation of Li's trip follows China's unexplained replacement of Foreign Minister Qin Gang in July after a prolonged absence from public view and a shake-up of the leadership of the People's Liberation Army's elite Rocket Force in recent months, moves that have raised questions about the Chinese leadership's decision-making.

A US official, on condition of anonymity, said Washington was aware of Li's cancelled meetings with the Vietnamese. US President Joe Biden visited Hanoi last week, where the two sides inked a historic upgrade of their partnership.US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Sep 8:"First, Foreign Minister Qin Gang goes missing, then the Rocket Force commanders go missing, and now Defence Minister Li Shangfu hasn't been seen in public for two weeks.

China's defence minister is mainly responsible for defence diplomacy and does not command combat forces. He has a less public profile than the foreign minister, who frequently appears in state media.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 6. in SG

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Jackie Chan seen buying Huawei phone; once said all Chinese people should use Chinese productsThe star is a fan of the brand and has been using their mobile phones since 2016.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

China’s Defence Minister Li Shangfu, not seen in weeks, skipped Vietnam meetingBeijing told Hanoi that the minister had a “health condition”, two Vietnamese officials said. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Source: straits_times - 🏆 5. / 69 Read more »

China's defence minister, not seen in weeks, skipped Vietnam meetBEIJING/HANOI — Chinese defence minister Li Shangfu abruptly pulled out of a meeting with Vietnamese defence leaders last week, three officials with direct knowledge of the matter said, amid questions about his more than two-weeks-long absence from public view.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Vietnam orders apartment block checks after deadly blazeHANOI: Vietnam on Thursday (Sep 14) ordered nationwide checks on small apartment buildings after a fire tore through a block in Hanoi, killing 56 people in the country's deadliest blaze in two decades.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Vietnam orders apartment block checks after deadly blazeHANOI — Vietnam on Thursday (Sept 14) ordered nationwide checks on small apartment buildings after a fire tore through a block in Hanoi, killing 56 people in the country's deadliest blaze in two decades.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Taiwan reports 28 Chinese air force planes in its air defence zoneTAIPEI: Taiwan's defence ministry said it spotted 28 Chinese air force planes in its air defence zone on Wednesday (Sep 13) morning, part of what Taipei calls regular harassment by Beijing amid heightened tensions across the strait. Democratically-governed Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, ha
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »