Fu Ying
Office 1Chairperson of the National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee
Term start 1March 2013
Term end 1March 2018
1blankname 1Chairman
1namedata 1Zhang Dejiang
Predecessor 1Li Zhaoxing
Successor 1Zhang Yesui
Office 2Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs
Term start 2January 2010
Term end 2March 2013
Premier 2Wen Jiabao
Li Keqiang
1blankname 2Minister
1namedata 2Yang Jiechi
Office 3Chinese Ambassador to the United Kingdom
Term start 3March 2007
Term end 3February 2010
Predecessor 3Zha Peixin
Successor 3Liu Xiaoming
Office 4Chinese Ambassador to Australia
Term start 4March 2004
Term end 4March 2007
Predecessor 4Wu Tao
Successor 4Zhang Junsai
Office 5Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines
Term start 5March 1999
Term end 5April 2000
Predecessor 5Guan Dengming
Successor 5Wang Chungui
Native name傅莹
Birth dateJanuary 1953 (age 73–74)
Birth placeHohhot, Inner Mongolia, China
PartyChinese Communist Party
Alma materBeijing Foreign Studies University
University of Kent
Fu Ying
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Fu Ying (born January 1953) is a Chinese politician and diplomat, best known for her terms as the ambassador to the Philippines, Australia, and the United Kingdom, as well as Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Early life

Fu was born in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, in 1953. Her father was a student of Ai Siqi and she is of Mongol descent.

An ethnic Mongol, Fu Ying is the first woman, and the only ethnic minority woman, to serve as Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs since 1979, and one of only two to serve in Chinese history. Fu graduated from the Beijing Foreign Studies University.

Diplomatic career

In 1976, she became the official interpreter of the diplomatic service.

She led the Chinese Delegation during talks with North Korea that led to the latter country's decision (later reneged on) to abandon nuclear weapons.[1] From 2004 to 2007 she was the ambassador to Australia. She was the Chinese ambassador to the United Kingdom from March 2007 to 2009. In February 2010 she returned to China and was replaced by Liu Xiaoming. She was Vice Foreign Minister from January 2010-March 2013.

In October 2012, Fu visited Manila in an effort to persuade the Philippines to continue bilateral discussions to address the South China Sea territorial disputes and to avoid involving the United States or taking the dispute to an international forum.[2]: 122 The Philippines responded by initiating an arbitration against China.[2]: 122

During her time as Vice Foreign Minister, Fu stated, "The Chinese Dream is also part of the dream of many in the developing world who now have a great opportunity to grow their economy."[3]: 85

In 2013, Fu became the chairperson of the National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee.[4]: 82

On August 8, 2016, the Philippines dispatched former president Fidel V. Ramos to Hong Kong to mitigate tensions following the result of the South China Sea Arbitration.[2]: 129 Fu met with Ramos and Wu Shicun (president of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies).[2]: 129 Ramos conveyed the Philippines' willingness to engage in formal discussions with China and the three issued a statement in their personal capacities emphasizing cooperation and dialogue between the two countries.[2]: 129

Diplomatic style

Fu had criticized Western biases on China. While serving as vice-foreign minister, she explained that, in preparation for a 2011 interview for German magazine Der Spiegel, got her staff to prepare her for questions on human rights, the Chinese military, and reforms. Eventually, she adopted a strategy of deflecting "hostile" questions and assumed that Western reporters would always "start from a negative perspective of China."[5] She had been described as "charming and soft-spoken" as a veteran diplomat in comparison with his contemporary, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi.[6]

Education

She graduated from the Beijing Foreign Studies University. In 1985, she received an MA in International Relations at the University of Kent. She also was given an honorary Doctorate of Civil Law in 2008 by the University of Kent.

Career

  • 1978–1982 Attaché, Embassy in Romania
  • 1982–1985 Attaché, Department of Translation and Interpretation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • 1985–1986 University of Kent[7]
  • 1986–1990 Third Secretary, Second Secretary and Deputy Director, the Department of Translation and Interpretation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • 1990–1992 Deputy Director and First Secretary, the Department of Asian Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • 1992–1993 Staff Member, United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia
  • 1993–1997 First Secretary, Director and Counsellor, Department of Asian Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • 1997–1998 Minister Counsellor, Embassy in Indonesia
  • 1998–2000 Ambassador to the Philippines
  • 2000–2003 Director-General, Department of Asian Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • 2003–2007 Ambassador to Australia
  • Mar 2007–2010 Ambassador to the United Kingdom
  • 2009–2013 Vice Foreign Minister of PRC
  • 2013–2017 Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee of China's 12th National People's Congress
  • 2017–2019 Vice Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of China's 13th National People's Congress
  • 2019 Honorary Dean of Institute of International Relations and Chairman of Center for International Strategy and Security of Tsinghua University[8]

A 2019 Report by the Hoover Institution of Stanford University stated that Fu Ying is the "senior figure in a growing number of US–China interactions," especially with U.S. think tanks.[9]

Personal life

Fu Ying tries to adhere to elements of traditional Inner Mongolian culture in her personal life. She drinks suutei tsai (奶茶, Hohhot-style milk tea) on the weekends, listens to the traditional Mongol long song, and eats Inner Mongolian food.[10] She has one daughter by her husband, ethnologist Hao Shiyuan (郝时远).[11]

References

  1. ^ State Department Daily Press Briefing April 21, 2003
  2. ^ Wang, Frances Yaping (2024). The Art of State Persuasion: China's Strategic Use of Media in Interstate Disputes. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780197757512.
  3. ^ Loh, Dylan M H (2025). "The Discursive and Affective Dimensions of the 'China Dream'". Chinese International Relations Theory as Emerging From Practice and Policy. Ping, Jonathan H.; Hayes, Anna; McCormick, Brett (eds.). New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-429-19769-7.
  4. ^ Loh, Dylan M.H. (2024). China's Rising Foreign Ministry: Practices and Representations of Assertive Diplomacy. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9781503638204.
  5. ^ "Ex-Chinese ambassador's media tips offer rare insight into Beijing's thinking". South China Morning Post. 2024-11-20. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
  6. ^ "Chinese foreign minister switch: Wolf Warrior, hopes of stability". South China Morning Post. 2023-07-26. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
  7. ^ Lunch with the FT: Madam Fu Ying, Financial Times, January 29, 2010
  8. ^ "FU Ying-Speakers-Boao Forum for Asia". Archived from the original on May 2, 2019.
  9. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  10. ^ "zh:傅莹:从电影放映员到外交官" [Fu Ying: From Film Projectionist to Diplomat] (in Chinese). People's Daily Online. 2013-03-08. Retrieved 2013-03-10.
  11. ^ leiyang (ed.) (2010-01-05). "Fu Ying Appointed Vice-Foreign Minister". chinanews.com.cn. All-China Women's Federation. Retrieved 2013-03-10.