New Delhi: Xu Feihong, the newly appointed Chinese Ambassador to India, arrived in New Delhi Friday to assume office at a time when relations between India and China continue to be strained due to the ongoing border standoff in eastern Ladakh.
The ambassadorial position at the Chinese mission has been vacant for the past 18 months. During that time, which was the longest since the gap between 1962 and 1976, Charge D’affaires Mia Jia served as the de facto head.
Xu’s predecessor Sun Weidong served in India from July 2019 to October 2022 — through the Covid-19 pandemic and the 2020 Galwan Valley clash in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed.
Meanwhile, India appointed a diplomat to Beijing in 2022. Ambassador Pradeep Kumar Rawat took charge in March of that year and presented his credentials to Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last April.
Xu, Beijing’s former ambassador to Kabul, will serve as the 17th Chinese ambassador to India. Chinese state media quoted him as saying that during his stint in India, his priorities would be to deepen “understanding and friendship” between the two people, expand exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and “improve” the bilateral relationship.
In an interview with state-run China Global Television Network (CGTN) published on 10 May, Xu was asked about his first reaction to his appointment as ambassador to India.
He responded, “It is an honourable mission and a sacred duty. I will do my best to deepen understanding and friendship between the two peoples, expand exchanges and cooperation in various fields and improve and advance the bilateral relationship.”
“I look forward to and trust that I will have the support and assistance from the Indian government and friends from all sectors,” he said.
Asked what would be his priorities upon assuming charge, Xu said, “Both China and India are time-honoured civilisations; we are each other’s important neighbours and the biggest emerging markets and developing countries of the world.”
He then went on to quote Xi Jinping to say: “If China and India speak in one voice, the whole world will listen. If the two countries join hands, the whole world will pay attention. I will follow the important consensus between our leaders.”
Also asked about the “strategic rivalry” between China and India in the neighbourhood, he said, “President Xi and Prime Minister Modi have agreed on the important assessment that China and India are cooperation partners, not competitors and reached an important common understanding that our two countries are each other’s development opportunities, not threats. This should serve as the fundamental guidelines for the growth of bilateral relations.
Xu’s arrival comes at a time of continuing tension in bilateral ties despite over 20 commander-level talks. While China insists bilateral ties not be deterred by the situation at the border, India has repeatedly said ties cannot be normal until peace and tranquillity prevail in those areas.
When serving in India, Sun had sparked controversy with an interview with news agency PTI in which he claimed the Galwan clash was “completely instigated” by the Indian side, adding the responsibility to solve the issue did not lie with the Chinese side.
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Who is Xu Feihong
Xu was born in May 1964 in Dongyang, Zhejiang in Eastern China. He holds a bachelor’s degree in law.
A career diplomat, he has served as assistant foreign minister, counsellor and later deputy director general of the Department of European Affairs at the Chinese foreign ministry. He had two main diplomatic postings before India – ambassador to Afghanistan (2011–2013) and Romania (2015 – May 2018). Prior to his role as assistant foreign minister, he served as the director of the Service Center for Foreign Ministry Organs and Overseas Organizations. His promotion in February 2021 as assistant foreign minister was part of a major reshuffle in government that year.
As far back as 2017, when serving in Romania, Xu spoke highly of China’s relationship with Russia. In an interview with local media, he said: “China and Russia are strategic partners. The relations between the two countries follow the principles of equality, trust, mutual support, common prosperity and eternal friendship.”
“These relationships are not and will not be affected by changes in the international situation, by external factors,” he added.
While serving in Afghanistan, Xu helped oversee the re-opening of the Confucius Institute of Kabul University in 2013.
“China and Afghanistan are good neighbours, friends, and partners… I wish all the students from Confucius Institute a promising future and could continue helping promote the bilateral ties since the two governments had upgraded their ties to the level of a strategic and cooperative partnership last year,” he had said.
The institute opened in 2008 and was subsequently shut down in 2010 due to security concerns in the strife-hit nation. Its re-opening came a year after China and Afghanistan upgraded ties to the level of a strategic partnership.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
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Always chosen with care. A prestigious assignment. Often promoted as Vice Minister after return to Beijing. May the new Ambassador contribute to an improvement in the relationship.