Xi urges Chinese envoys to create 'diplomatic iron army'

Beijing [China], December 31: Chinese President Xi Jinping urged Chinese ambassadors to forge a "diplomatic iron army" loyal to the Communist Party, reviving the abrasive "Wolf Warrior" rhetoric propagated by some diplomats as a sign of China's increasingly assertive foreign policy.
His remarks harked back to a more brash, confrontational style of rhetoric adopted by Chinese diplomats since 2020, which had been less prominent this year as China sought to attract foreign investment for its weakened economy.
Ties with the United States thawed briefly after Xi met U.S. President Joe Biden in November, but China is also currently engaged in diplomatic disputes with the Philippines over a contested reef in the South China Sea, as well as Japan over its discharge of nuclear-contaminated wastewater from its wrecked Fukushima reactor.
Xi also urged envoys to adhere to Party discipline, repeating the word "strict" seven times in an annual keynote speech after the Central Foreign Affairs Work Conference, a secretive high-level Communist Party foreign policy planning meeting that takes place once every five years, concluded on Thursday.
Xi's remarks come amid a renewed disciplinary push among China's diplomatic corps after the previous foreign minister Qin Gang was removed from his post in July, having served only seven months in the role amid rumours of an affair.
Xi also emphasised the need for China to increase its international influence to combat what he believes are the West's attempts to contain and suppress China, repeating the word "struggle" five times.
At the Central Foreign Affairs Work Conference, Xi also lashed out against the West's "bullying" and "hegemony", urging diplomats and officials to "carry forward our fighting spirit".
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation