China removes senior diplomat in latest anti-graft investigation

A senior Chinese diplomat has been removed from his position and is being investigated for an unspecified disciplinary violation — the latest high-ranking official to fall under President Xi Jinping’s campaign to root out corruption.

A two-sentence statement from China's Foreign Ministry did not offer more details Friday about the removal of Assistant Foreign Minister Zhang Kunsheng. The China News Service reported that Zhang was the head of the ministry's protocol department.

Zhang is one of the highest-ranking officials and the most senior diplomat to be hit by a corruption probe launched by Xi. Assistant foreign ministers rank below the minister and six vice ministers.

His dismissal comes amid signs that Xi’s efforts against graft — which independent economist Andy Xie Guozhong has told Al Jazeera costs China 10 percent of its gross domestic product annually — are starting to affect businesses.

Gambling revenue in Macau, the world's biggest gambling hub, fell last year for the first time since casinos were liberalized in 2001, as Beijing's campaign against conspicuous spending by public officials has led to a decline in wealthy players.

China's Public Security Ministry has in recent months reportedly started an operation called "Fox Hunt" to identify corrupt officials who move their illicit capital out of the country through Macau's casinos. Revenue for Macau's casino industry fell 2.6 percent in 2014 compared to a year earlier, to $44.1 billion. That's still nearly seven times that of Las Vegas, according to data released on Friday by Macau's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau.

In December, Macau saw a record 30.4 percent drop in gambling revenue compared to December 2013, which constituted the seventh straight monthly decline.

Macau, a special administrative region like Hong Kong, is the only place in China where casino gambling is legal. A government-sanctioned casino monopoly ended in 2001.

Al Jazeera and wire services