
Washington (AFP) – The US ambassador to China, Terry Branstad, is stepping down, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced Monday.Thanking Branstad for his service, Pompeo said in a tweet that he had “contributed to rebalancing U.S.-China relations so that it (sic) is results-oriented, reciprocal, and fair.”The former two-term Iowa governor, 73, had been in the post since May 2017, representing Washington in Beijing during a period of strained ties with China, marked by tensions over trade, regional territorial claims, the coronavirus pandemic, and unrest in Hong Kong.In June, he was summoned b…