Cut The Clutter : China’s ‘missing foreign minister’ Qin Gang, his ‘affair’ & sacking, how China works

Known as Xi Jinping’s blue-eyed boy, Qin Gang was sacked as the Chinese foreign minister this week after a month’s absence from the public eye. Qin, who remains a state councillor, had a meteoric rise — going straight from China’s US ambassador to foreign minister. He was last seen on 25 June, when he held discussions with counterparts from Russia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam in Beijing. His absence comes amid rumours of an affair with a famous TV journalist. In episode 1279 of #CutTheClutter, Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta talks about Qin’s rise, the speculation surrounding his absence, the return of his predecessor Wang Yi as his successor too, and how the complex Chinese system works.