Chinese spokesperson appointed vice foreign minister

BEIJING: The State Council announced the appointment of Hua Chunying as China’s vice foreign minister.

Hua was born in 1970 and graduated from Nanjing University. She has worked in the former Department of Western European Affairs, the Department of European Affairs, the Information Department, as well as at the Chinese Embassy in Singapore and the Chinese Mission to the EU.

From 2012 to 2019, Hua served as the deputy director-general of the department of press, communication and public diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).

She is also the fifth female spokesperson for the MFA, following Li Jinhua, Fan Huijuan, Zhang Qiyue, and Jiang Yu.

In July 2019, Hua Chunying succeeded Lu Kang as the director-general of the ministry’s department of press, communication and public diplomacy.

In October 2021, Hua was appointed assistant minister of foreign affairs. She is also the third female deputy foreign minister, following Wang Hairong and Fu Ying.