News: Former Chinese Ambassador to Afghanistan Liu Jinsong (刘劲松) was appointed Director of Policy Planning at the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
Quick Take: Born in 1972, Liu Jinsong is one of the youngest departmental-level directors at MFA. With a master’s degree from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, his resume is extremely well-rounded compared to many of his peers: before becoming Chinese ambassador to Afghanistan, Liu held embassy posts in Thailand, Japan, the UK, and India. He also worked on Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan affairs, in addition to several posts within MFA’s policy research and economic affairs departments. From 2012-2015, Liu served as MFA liaison to Silk Road Fund, where he took a board seat at one of China’s largest state-owned funds investing in the Belt and Road region. With his young age and rich experience in both policy planning and foreign service, Liu is a rising star within MFA and likely being groomed for vice-ministerial level positions.