Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang will skip a meeting of Southeast Asia’s top diplomats in Jakarta, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, extending an unusual 16-day public absence.
Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations kicked off meetings in Indonesia on Tuesday. The gathering this week would have placed Qin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the same room for the first time since they met in Beijing last month.
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi is expected to take Qin’s place at the meetings that run until Saturday, according to the people, who asked not to be named because the plans are private.
Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
Read more: Chinese Foreign Minister’s Unusual 12-Day Absence Draws Scrutiny
Qin’s last public engagement was on June 25, when he met officials from Sri Lanka, Russia and Vietnam, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry website. He also participated that day in an event where Chinese Premier Li Qiang met Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley.
Qin had been expected to meet the European Union’s top diplomat Josep Borrell earlier this month, but China abruptly postponed the trip without giving details. Politico previously reported there was speculation in Brussels the foreign minister had health issues, prompting the delay.
Southeast Asian nations are set to debate pressing regional security matters at the Asean summit, including civil conflict in Myanmar and China’s activity in the South China Sea. Tensions between the US and China over Taiwan will also likely feature, with Asian leaders worried over the prospect of an accident spiraling into a military conflict
Daniel Kritenbrink, the top US State Department official for Asia, speaking about Blinken’s visit on Friday, said the US would use the trip to work with its Asean partners to advance a shared vision for the region.
He added that Blinken plans to raise Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will also be in attendance.
Author: Faris Mokhtar and Philip J. Heijmans