8 Things to Know About Trump's Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Friday, March 10, 2017

5. He might not speak fluent Mandarin

Chinese President Xi Jinping makes a speech at the celebration of the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, July 1, 2016. | (Photo: Reuters/Kim Kyung-Hoon)

Multiple websites, especially those displaying biographical information about Huntsman, have said that the former ambassador to China can speak fluent Mandarin Chinese.

However, some have disputed that claim. An article published by Slate in 2011 critiqued a few of the Mandarin statements Huntsman made to assorted news outlets, noting that he made several grammatical errors in the language.

"These mistakes are all the more puzzling because Huntsman spoke only a few sentences total, was given the opportunity to say anything he wanted, and knew ahead of time that his interviewers often ask him to speak in Mandarin," argued Slate.

"It is difficult to evaluate Huntsman's Chinese-speaking ability because he so rarely speaks more than a brief sentence or two and never says anything particularly difficult."

In response to the Slate piece, the publication Foreign Policy argued that the matter was a nonissue as few politicians were known to have excellent administrations based on their foreign language skills.

"Just judging by those translations, it sounds like Huntsman could make himself understood, even if his grammar was off," read the Foreign Policy column.

"He might be exaggerating his abilities a bit, but I suspect that most Americans who have ever claimed knowledge of language they haven't studied since high school on a resume can sympathize."