Sun Weidong appointed China's next Ambassador to India

Beijing: China has appointed veteran diplomat Sun Weidong its new Ambassador to India, in place of Luo Zhaohui, who was recently promoted to the post of Vice Foreign Minister.

Sun served as the Director-General in China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Policy Planning Department before being appointed to the current post. He has also held the post of China's Ambassador to Pakistan and holds expertise in the South Asian region.

Vikram Misri, the Ambassador of India to the People's Republic of China, congratulated Sun on his appointment on Wednesday.

"Congratulations to His Excellency Sun Weidong, who has been appointed as the new Ambassador of the People's Republic of #China to #India - had the opportunity to welcome him home recently in #Beijing and wish him all the best for his important mission," Misri tweeted.

The Embassy of India in Beijing had also stated that Misri had met Luo -- the newly appointed Vice Foreign Minister and former Chinese Ambassador to India -- to "compare notes on the upcoming engagements in bilateral relations."

"Ambassador @VikramMisri met Vice Foreign Minister and former Ambassador to India Luo Zhaohui. Ambassador congratulated Mr Luo for assuming charge as VFM. The two sides used the opportunity to compare notes on the upcoming engagements in bilateral relations," the Embassy had tweeted on June 9.

The former Chinese Ambassador is said to have played a significant role in dousing tensions between India and China during Doklam standoff and was widely appreciated for his expertise in India and its foreign policy. Luo was also known for his rapport with the political leaders of the country.