Israeli Minister of Home Front Defense Matan Vilnai was elected as Israel's next envoy to China in a unanimous cabinet vote Sunday morning.

"I see the nomination as of a national importance," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he was congratulating Vilnai, who is set to start his new role in Beijing this summer.

"We wish to significantly increase the trade and economic ties with the rising powers in Asia, first and foremost with China. We have many projects in which we are interested in the participation of these powers, such as of infrastructure," Netanyahu said.

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced Vilnai's nomination last week during a diplomatic visit to the United States.

"China is an important country that we wish to tighten and strengthen our relations with, and it is appropriate that the Israeli representation there will be of the highest rank," Lieberman said.

The foreign minister added that he was "convinced that Matan Vilnai, who served as a minister in Israeli governments and was also a senior official in the Israeli army, will fulfill the role in the best way possible."

Vilnai, 68, is a respected public figure in Israel and had a career in the Israeli army, where he reached the rank of major general and deputy chief of staff.

In 1998 Vilnai retired from the army and started his political career with the Labor party. In 1999 he was elected to the Knesset (parliament), and was appointed as the minister of science, culture and sport.

Vilnai left Labor in 2011 along with then party leader and Minister of Defense Ehud Barak, and joined the Atzmaut ( Independence) party. He was later appointed as the minister of home front defense.

Lieberman offered Vilnai the position of ambassador to China over a month ago. When Vilnai was considering the offer, Netanyahu also called him and asked him personally to accept the job, which he described as of a major significance in strengthening ties with China.

Both Netanyahu and Lieberman have noted that there is a significant importance to increasing Israeli exports to China.

A close associate of Vilnai said that he has been intensively learning about China over the last few weeks.

"He is reading many books about China and meeting relevant people that are sharing their experience with China with him," he said, noting that Vilnai was reading On China by former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who paved ties with Beijing during the 1970s.

The nomination of an Israeli minister to the position of an ambassador to China is not unprecedented, as Labor party's Ora Namir fulfilled the role between the years of 1996 and 2000.

Talking to Xinhua, Namir shared her philosophy for being a successful envoy to China. "You need to work, and you need to work hard. You need to tour, make connections with people and get to know China," she said.

"China is a huge country with a large population, and I think that the key to success is to get to know not only the big cities, but the villages too. The Chinese people are very welcoming, and my tip for Vilnai is to get to know China as a whole," Namir suggested.