| Minister of State Security of the People's Republic of China | |
|---|---|
| 中华人民共和国国家安全部部长 | |
 Sword and Shield of the MSS | |
 | |
| Ministry of State Security | |
| Style | Minister |
| Status | Provincial and ministerial-level official |
| Member of | Plenary Meeting of the State Council |
| Reports to | Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (CPLC) |
| Seat | Yidongyuan |
| Nominator | Premier (chosen within theChinese Communist Party) |
| Appointer | President with the confirmation of theNational People's Congress or itsStanding Committee |
| Term length | No fixed term |
| Precursor | Director of the Central Investigation Department |
| Formation | 1 July 1983; 42 years ago (1983-07-01) |
| First holder | Ling Yun (凌云) |
| Unofficial names | D/MSS |
| Deputy | Vice Minister of State Security |
Theminister of state security is aChinese government position within theconstituent departments of the State Council which functions as the head of theMinistry of State Security. The position reports directly to the head of theCentral Political and Legal Affairs Commission (CPLC) of theChinese Communist Party. Within the State Council, the position is ninth inorder of precedence. All ministers of state security have held the position ascivilians while simultaneously being given thepolice rank ofcommissioner general during their tenure.[1] Like the minister of public security, the minister holds the police badge identification number “000001”.[1][2]
The position of minister of state security was established in 1983 with the creation of the ministry following the combination ofcounterintelligence functions of theMinistry of Public Security with the Central Investigation Department.[3]
Several ministers of state security have gone on to serve in other senior cabinet posts, including minister of public security.Jia Chunwang further advanced toProcurator–General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, a position roughly equivalent toattorney general. In 2022,Chen Wenqing became the first outgoing minister of state security to be promoted directly to leader of the CPLC, whose oversight portfolio includes the MSS, while incoming ministerChen Yixin became dual hatted, retained his previous position as the third rank position of Secretary-General of the CPLC, in addition to leading the MSS.[4][2]
Officially, the minister is nominated by thepremier of the State Council, who is then approved by theNational People's Congress or itsStanding Committee and appointed by thepresident.[5] In practice, the minister is chosen within theChinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership. New ministers of state security are selected periodically, with recent ministers each being formally elected to theCCP Central Committee during iterations of theCCP National Congress held every five years, though such decisions are normally made in secret at theBeidaihe meeting held each August inBeidaihe,Hebei to litigate and preplan the upcoming years decisions.[6][2]
| No. | Portrait | Director | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Sheng, KangKang Sheng 康生 (born 1898) | 1939 (1939) | 1949 (1949) | 10 years | Mao Zedong |
| 2 |  | Kenong, LiLi Kenong 李克农 (born 1899) | 1949 (1949) | 1955 (1955) | 6 years | Mao Zedong |
| No. | Portrait | Director | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Kenong, LiLi Kenong 李克农 (born 1899) | 1955 (1955) | 1962 (1962) | 7 years | Mao Zedong |
| 2 | ![Kong Yuan [zh] 孔原](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aKong_Yuan.jpg) | Yuan, KongKong Yuan [zh] 孔原 (born 1906) | 1962 (1962) | 1967 (1967) | 5 years | Mao Zedong |
| 3 |  | Yuan, KongWang Dongxing 汪东兴 (born 1916) | 1967 (1967) | 1969 (1969) | 2 years | Mao Zedong |
| 4 | | Sheng, KangKang Sheng 康生 (born 1898) | 1969 (1969) | 1973 (1973) | 4 years | Mao Zedong |
| 5 |  | Qingchang, LuoLuo Qingchang 罗青长 (born 1918) | 1973 (1973) | 1983 (1983) | 10 years | Mao Zedong Deng Xiaoping |
| No. | Portrait | Minister | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Paramount leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Yun, LingLing Yun 凌云 (1917–2018) | 1 June 1983 (1983-06-01) | 1 September 1985 (1985-09-01) | 2 years, 92 days | Deng Xiaoping |
| 2 |  | Chunwang, JiaJia Chunwang 贾春旺 (born 1938) | 1 September 1985 (1985-09-01) | 1 March 1998 (1998-03-01) | 12 years, 181 days | Deng Xiaoping Jiang Zemin |
| 3 |  | Yongyue, XuXu Yongyue 许永跃 (born 1942) | 1 March 1998 (1998-03-01) | 1 August 2007 (2007-08-01) | 9 years, 153 days | Jiang Zemin Hu Jintao |
| 4 |  | Huichang, GengGeng Huichang 耿惠昌 (born 1951) | 30 August 2007 (2007-08-30) | 7 November 2016 (2016-11-07) | 9 years, 96 days | Hu Jintao Xi Jinping |
| 5 | .jpg) | Wenqing, ChenChen Wenqing 陈文清 (born 1960) | 7 November 2016 (2016-11-07) | 30 October 2022 (2022-10-30) | 5 years, 357 days | Xi Jinping |
| 6 | | Yixin, ChenChen Yixin 陈一新 (born 1959) | 30 October 2022 (2022-10-30) | Incumbent | 3 years, 20 days | Xi Jinping |
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