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China appoints career diplomat Sun Weidong as new envoy to India
Sun takes over at a time when the diplomatic corps of the two countries are preparing for President Xi Jinping’s visit to India in October for the second informal summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
China has named career diplomat Sun Weidong as its ambassador to India weeks after outgoing envoy Luo Zhaohui was appointed a vice foreign minister.
A former ambassador to Pakistan, Sun held the post of director general at the foreign ministry’s planning department before being named as the envoy to India.
Vikram Misri, India’s envoy here, congratulated Sun on his appointment on Wednesday.
“Congratulations to His Excellency Sun Weidong, who has been appointed as the new Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to India - had the opportunity to welcome him home recently in Beijing and wish him all the best for his important mission,” Misri tweeted.
Sun takes over at a time when the diplomatic corps of the two countries are preparing for President Xi Jinping’s visit to India in October for the second informal summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Sun, an expert on South Asia worked with Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar during his tenure as Ambassador in Beijing. Sun was the Deputy Director General at the time.
An official announcement about new Ambassador’s appointment would be made after due administrative process, a Chinese official told news agency PTI.
