When Chancellor Angela Merkel appointed Jan Hecker as her chief advisor on foreign policy four years ago, it came as quite a surprise. After all, she had filled the most important foreign policy position with someone who was not particularly internationally versed. Until then, Hecker had been a domestic politician through and through. As head of the Refugee Policy Coordination Unit, he was at best only marginally involved in foreign policy issues. In another unexpected move, leaks at the beginning of the year revealed that the Chancellor was going to appoint the 55-year-old as the Federal Republic’s new ambassador to Beijing. He is expected to take up his new post in the next few weeks.