China's Next Ambassador to Singapore Revealed
Who is Cao Zhongming and why is he being sent to Southeast Asia?
Summary:
Cao Zhongming is set to become the next Chinese Ambassador to Singapore
Until recently, Cao had been serving as the Chinese Ambassador to Belgium
In 2023, Singapore and China upgraded their bilateral relations to ‘an all-round, high-quality, future-oriented partnership’
Singapore has a close relationship with both China and the US
Singapore could have a new Prime Minister in 2024
This change in leadership will bring a degree of uncertainty for China
Cao may have been selected because of his experience and assertiveness
On Sunday 10 March, Lianhe Zabao revealed that seasoned diplomat Cao Zhongming (曹忠明) has been confirmed to be the next Chinese Ambassador to Singapore. It was also reported that Cao is expected to arrive later this month. Previously, Cao had been serving as the Chinese Ambassador to Belgium, where he had been since late 2018.
The position in Singapore was made vacant in July 2023, after the previous ambassador, Sun Haiyan, returned to China to become a deputy minister of the International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party.
This will be Cao’s first time being posted to Southeast Asia, having spent most of his career outside of China in French-speaking countries in Europe, such as France and Belgium, as well as in Africa, with time spent in both Chad and Mali. For more information on Cao’s career, see the end of this article.
Since bilateral relations were established in 1990, China and Singapore have enjoyed strong ties, and the two countries have coordinated on a number of major projects, such as the Suzhou Industrial Park, the Tianjin Eco-City, and the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative. China is Singapore’s largest trading partner, and Singapore is a key participant in the Belt and Road Initiative.
In April 2023, China and Singapore’s relationship was upgraded to ‘an all-round, high-quality, future-oriented partnership’, which shows that the two countries plan to continue their close cooperation.
Singapore could have a new Prime Minister by the end of 2024, with Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong possibly being replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong as early as November.
Wong has already begun taking a leading role in managing bilateral relations with China, evidenced by the fact that he recently co-chaired the 19th Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation, the platform Singapore and China use to set the strategic direction of bilateral cooperation. He has already met both Chinese Premier Li Qiang and First Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang.
Under Prime Minister Lee’s leadership, Singapore has successfully navigated the US-China rivalry and has thus enjoyed a close economic and strategic relationship with both major powers.
Wong taking office will mark the beginning of a new era for Singaporean politics, which will be both an opportunity and a challenge for China. It will be an opportunity to push for closer ties with Singapore, and it will be a challenge because change brings a degree of uncertainty. As such, China might be concerned that Wong’s leadership could bring Singapore closer to the US.
For example, whilst Wong has already expressed support for ‘reinforced’ ties with China, he has also welcomed the expansion of Singapore’s partnership with the US.
Is this uncertainty one of the reasons why Cao Zhongming was chosen as ambassador? It is possible. Not only is Cao a seasoned diplomat, but his style can also be quite assertive. Any unfavourable change to the status quo in Singapore would likely be met with swift pushback from Cao. Indeed, whilst he was serving as Ambassador to Belgium, Cao’s assertive approach made headlines on several occasions.
In response to calls by Belgian MPs in 2020 for an independent investigation into the Covid-19 outbreak in China, Cao sent what Politico described as an 'angry' letter to one of the Belgian MPs involved, Theo Francken.
Els Van Hoof, who is the chairman of Belgium’s parliamentary foreign affairs committee, received her own letter in 2021 regarding a draft resolution that criticised Hong Kong’s national security law.
A year later, in 2022, Van Hoof once again received a letter from Cao over another resolution that this time called for de-escalation in the Taiwan Strait and condemned ‘Chinese aggression toward Taiwan’.
It is fair to suggest, therefore, that Cao could take a similar approach in Singapore, if he deems it necessary. That being said, Wong’s government will most likely want to continue to balance relations, therefore, Cao’s assertiveness may never be needed.
For now, all we can do is wait for Cao Zhongming to arrive and take up his new post.
Cao Zhongming’s CV1
Date of birth: October 1965
1982-1989: Student, Peking University
1989-1992: Staff member| Attaché, Department of African Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)
1992-1995: Attaché | Third Secretary, Chinese Embassy in Chad
1995-2003: Deputy Director | Director | Counsellor, Department of African Affairs, MFA
2003-2006: Counsellor, Chinese Embassy in France
2006-2011: Deputy Director General, Department of African Affairs, MFA
2011-2014: Chinese Ambassador to Mali
2014-2015: Deputy Director General, Department of Personnel, MFA
2015-2018: Director General, Department of Personnel, MFA
2018-2024: Chinese Ambassador to Belgium
Education
Master of Laws, Peking University
http://be.china-embassy.gov.cn/dsxx/dsjl/201809/t20180922_2482920.htm