Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang attends a press conference after talks with his Dutch counterpart Wopke Hoekstra in Beijing, China, May 23, 2023. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/Pool/file photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 19 (Reuters) - China's former Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who was ousted from his position in July, had an extramarital affair while he was ambassador to the United States, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with a briefing. The report said Qin was cooperating with the investigation, which was now focused on whether the affair or Qin's conduct had compromised China's national security. Senior Chinese officials were told that an internal Communist Party investigation found Qin engaged in the affair throughout his tenure as China's ambassador to the United States, the report said. Qin was replaced by veteran diplomat Wang Yi in July as the foreign minister after a mysterious one-month absence from duties barely half a year into the job.

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Persons: Qin Gang, Wopke Hoekstra, Thomas Peter /, Qin, spokeperson Mao Ning, Wang Yi, Shubham, Neil Fullick, Michael Perry Organizations: Foreign, REUTERS, Wall Street, Senior, Communist Party, Beijing, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, United States, U.S, Washington, Bengaluru