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Washington, United States:
The US ambassador to China, Terry Branstad, is stepping down, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo introduced Monday.
Thanking Branstad for his service, Pompeo mentioned in a tweet that he had “contributed to rebalancing U.S.-China relations so that it is results-oriented, reciprocal, and fair.”
The causes for the ambassador’s departure weren’t instantly clear, and China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs — whereas acknowledging Pompeo’s tweet — mentioned it had not obtained discover of his resignation.
The former two-term Iowa governor, 73, had been within the put up since May 2017, representing Washington in Beijing throughout a interval of strained ties with China, marked by tensions over commerce, regional territorial claims, the coronavirus pandemic, and unrest in Hong Kong.
In June, he was summoned by Beijing after President Donald Trump signed a legislation that paved the best way for sanctions over Hong Kong, an motion the overseas ministry slammed as “gross interference in China’s internal affairs”.
Last 12 months, he known as on Beijing to open a “substantive dialogue” with the Dalai Lama throughout a uncommon go to to Tibet, a area the place the central authorities is accused of widespread repression.
An early supporter of Trump’s run for the White House in 2016, Branstad was appointed quickly after the election.
At the time, Trump’s transition crew praised his “tremendous understanding of China and Chinese people.”
He was reported to have a long-standing relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, whom he first met within the 1980s.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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