 Ronning, Collins, Small and Menzies (b. in Zhangde, Henan) were Chinese born diplomats who possessed significant Chinese cultural knowledge, and in the case of Ronning, near-native language skills.Paynter, Mulroney and Saint-Jacques had served as diplomats to China prior to being appointed ambassador.John Lawrence Paynter died in Vancouver 10 months into his posting while still serving as Canada's Ambassador to China.