BEIJING (Kyodo) -- China's ambassador to the United States, Cui Tiankai, said Monday that he will leave the post in the near future after eight years on the job, state-run media reported.
China is expected to appoint Qin Gang, a former Foreign Ministry spokesman, as the country's new envoy in Washington.
Cui, who has worked as the ambassador to the United States since 2013, was quoted by the media as saying in a statement posted on his embassy's website that the China-U.S. relationship is at a "key crossroad" that will have to choose either dialogue or conflict.
He also called on the Chinese currently living in the United States to shoulder more of the responsibility of promoting world peace and stability, according to the official China Global Television Network.
Cui's replacement will come as China and the United States have been at odds over several issues such as trade, state-of-the-art technology, Beijing's alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang and security challenges posed to Taiwan and its vicinity.
