On Monday, September 14, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad has tendered his resignation, but he did not disclose the reasons for Branstad’s resignation.
Pompeo thanked Branstad for his more than three years of service and said that Branstad “contributed to a rebalancing of the relationship between the United States and China in which the U.S.-China relationship is more results-based, reciprocal, and fair. This will continue to have a lasting and positive impact on U.S. foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific region for decades to come,” Pompeo said. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said it had not yet received Branstad’s resignation.
Branstad, 73, is a Republican who announced his support for Trump early in the last presidential election. He served two terms as governor of Iowa and then as U.S. ambassador to China starting in 2017. Trump’s office has praised Branstad’s “deep understanding of China and its people. During his tenure as U.S. Ambassador to China, he has seen the relationship between the two countries strain dramatically, from trade wars to the neo-crown virus to issues such as Hong Kong. In June, Branstad was summoned to a meeting in Beijing, where the Chinese government was outraged by Trump’s signing of sanctions against Hong Kong officials, which it considered a serious interference in China’s internal affairs. Last year, during his trip to Tibet, Branstad called for “substantive dialogue” between Beijing and the Dalai Lama.
Recent Comments