Political turmoil in China before SCO meeting, Chinese diplomat Liu Jianchao, close to President Xi Jinping, detained:

News Topical, Digital Desk : Senior Chinese diplomat Liu Jianchao, who is considered a possible future foreign minister of China and has close ties with President Xi Jinping, has been detained for questioning.

Liu, 61, led a CPC delegation to attend the summit in South Africa on July 28. He was taken in for questioning after returning to Beijing from a foreign trip in late July, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Liu's detention sparked diplomatic stir

However, there has been no official confirmation of his detention yet. The news of Liu's detention has created a stir in Chinese official and diplomatic circles ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting to be held in the Chinese city of Tianjin later this month.

The summit of the 10-member SCO is scheduled to be held from August 31 to September 1. Although China's Foreign Minister is Wang Yi, as the Minister of the International Department of the CPC, Liu has had a profound influence on China's foreign policy.

Liu was among the top officials whom External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met during his visit on July 14 to discuss progress in normalising ties following the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia last year.

Nonetheless, the official website of the CPC International Department still carries photos of Liu and accounts of his meetings with various international dignitaries.