Who is he?

Cui Tiankai is the outgoing Vice Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). Cui’s diplomatic career spans more than two decades and he recently has held responsibility for overseeing a range of issues related to Asian affairs and U.S.-China relations.

As Vice Foreign Minister overseeing the Americas portfolio, Cui in May 2012 took the lead for the Chinese government in managing the working-level negotiations with the U.S. embassy in Beijing for the high-profile case of Chen Guangcheng, the blind legal rights activist who  sought American protection after escaping from house arrest in Shandong, China. He also represented the Chinese as the counterpart to former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell in the series of bilateral dialogues known as the U.S.-China Asia-Pacific Consultations.

Cui Tiankai during his time as Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs for the People's Republic of China. Cui is now the incoming PRC ambassador to the United States. Source: USDAgov's flickr stream, U.S. government work.

Cui held positions as both counselor and interpreter at the UN, and served as China’s ambassador to Japan from 2007 to 2009. He received his Master’s in International Public Policy at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, and studied at the Center for Training Interpreters for the United Nations at Beijing Foreign Studies University.

Why is he in the news?

In conjunction with the first session of China’s 12th National People’s Congress, Cui last week was tapped to replace Zhang Yesui as China’s ambassador to Washington.

What can we expect from him?

Cui will shoulder the task of ensuring that the U.S.-China relationship remains on an even keel. Viewed as a particularly smooth and urbane diplomat, he is well-positioned to effectively represent Chinese interests in Washington.  He will likely be a candid interlocutor and will be heavily focused early in his tenure on establishing good working relations between the new leaders in China and the top foreign policy and economic officials in the second Obama administration.