KB News Desk
China’s foreign minister will likely visit South Korea next week for talks expected to focus on North Korea’s nuclear program, bilateral ties and regional security issues, sources said Monday.
Seoul and Beijing are in final-stage consultations over a possible two-day visit by Wang Yi, who is also a member of the Communist Party’s Political Bureau, from Aug. 19-20, according to sources familiar with the matter.
If finalized, the trip would mark the first visit to South Korea by a senior Chinese foreign policy official since President Lee Jae Myung’s state visit to China and summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in January.
It would also be Wang’s first trip to Seoul for bilateral foreign ministerial talks since September 2021.
Wang is expected to meet Foreign Minister Cho Hyun to discuss bilateral relations, North Korea’s nuclear program and broader developments on the Korean Peninsula, as well as Taiwan and the situation in the Middle East.
A courtesy call on Lee and a separate meeting with Unification Minister Chung Dong-young are also under consideration.
The two sides are also expected to discuss follow-up measures to agreements reached at the January summit, including efforts to expand economic and cultural cooperation and people-to-people exchanges.
Wang’s visit had been discussed earlier this year but did not materialize. Since then, Beijing has stepped up high-level exchanges with Pyongyang, with Wang visiting North Korea in April followed by Xi’s trip there in June.
South Korean officials say the planned visit could be part of Beijing’s effort to restore balance in its engagement with the two Koreas.
“China has maintained a kind of balanced diplomacy between North and South Korea on the Korean Peninsula,” a South Korean official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “With recent high-level China-North Korea exchanges shifting the weight toward Pyongyang, Wang’s visit can be seen as part of an effort to balance relations with Seoul as well.”
For Seoul, one of the key issues will be whether Beijing signals any change in its position on North Korea’s denuclearization.
The term was notably absent from statements issued after the June Xi-Kim summit, fueling concerns that Beijing may be growing more accepting of Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal.
South Korean officials are expected to urge China to more clearly reaffirm the principle of denuclearization and play a role in bringing North Korea back to dialogue.
Wang, however, may opt for broader language emphasizing peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and a political resolution rather than explicitly calling for North Korea’s denuclearization.
China is meanwhile expected to reiterate its position on Taiwan and the “one China” principle, particularly after South Korea, the United States and Japan recently reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.
Maritime issues, including Chinese structures in the Provisional Measures Zone in the Yellow Sea, maritime boundary negotiations and illegal fishing by Chinese vessels, could also feature in the talks.
The two sides could also discuss Lee’s possible attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen in November, officials said.
With Wang’s visit expected to take place ahead of a planned US-China summit in late September, the two sides may also exchange views on major international issues, including the US-Iran war and tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz.
