Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi concluded a high-level visit to Seoul on Friday, urging South Korean leaders to avoid taking sides between Beijing and Washington. The diplomatic push coincided with regional friction sparked by U.S. plans for renewed leadership talks with North Korea and announced reductions in joint military exercises.
The diplomatic tour brought China’s top diplomat to Seoul for a two-day visit starting Wednesday, marking his first solo trip to the country in five years. During meetings with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac, and Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, Wang delivered a direct warning regarding geopolitical alignment as Washington adjusts its posture on the peninsula. The trip follows renewed high-level exchanges after years of friction over Seoul’s deployment of a U.S. missile defense system opposed by Beijing.
Wang Yi Urges Strategic Autonomy and Blames Washington for Peninsula Tensions
In meetings held on Thursday, Wang pressed Seoul to reject bloc confrontation.
“The fundamental solution to the tensions on the Korean Peninsula lies in addressing the root causes of the problem and urging the United States to abandon its hostile policy toward North Korea,”
Wang Yi, Chinese Foreign Minister, via Xinhua and Reuters
Wang also called on the South Korean government to achieve genuine strategic autonomy, refrain from bloc confrontation and taking sides, and develop relations with major powers including China and the United States in parallel and without contradiction during his discussions in Seoul. While in South Korea, he told Wi Sung-lac that China would be glad to see the peninsula move toward peaceful coexistence between South Korea and North Korea, calling for a restart of dialogue and restoration of trust. He additionally invited Wi to visit China, according to South Korea’s presidential office. At the same time, Wang declined to back Seoul’s push for multiparty peace talks involving the North, while noting that bilateral ties had fully recovered following past friction, citing recent exchanges between their leaders and renewed cooperation on trade, technology, and people-to-people exchanges.
U.S. Policy Shifts and North Korean Missile Launches Shape Regional Uncertainty
The diplomatic friction arrived against a backdrop of shifting U.S. defense policies in East Asia, as President Donald Trump’s actions sowed doubts about Washington’s reliability in the region. U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he plans to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year, adding that the Asian nation held 57 “very powerfulnuclear weapons. Trump had also ordered Pentagon officials to
substantially reduceand cut short joint military exercises with South Korea, citing their cost and his
very good relationship” with Kim, developments that appeared to catch Seoul by surprise.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has maintained its official stance demanding North Korea to denuclearise, which Pyongyang has consistently rejected. Seoul reacted sharply to security pressures on the ground, condemning North Korea’s launch of more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles on Thursday. The action prompted the South’s presidential office to convene an emergency security meeting and order its military to maintain full readiness during ongoing joint exercises with the U.S.
Seoul Seeks Beijing’s Cooperation Amid Bilateral Trade Negotiations
Despite diplomatic friction regarding security approaches, South Korean officials pursued broader economic and regional cooperation. Wi Sung-lac asked Wang for China’s constructive cooperation in pursuing South Korea’s policy on North Korea, while the South Korean government is trying to resume dialogue with North Korea as well as calling for a phased, pragmatic approach to North Korea’s denuclearisation beginning with a halt to its nuclear programme. In separate talks with Lee Jae Myung, Wang urged Seoul to adhere to a friendly policy towards China, saying bilateral ties had fully recovered
and made progress this year following meetings between the two countries’ leaders.
A rational, pragmatic, and positive policy towards China is entirely in line with South Korea's interests and the trend of the times,
Wang said, calling for an early completion of the second phase of negotiations on their free trade agreement. He stated that the two countries should promote regional economic integration amid intensifying fragmentation in the global economy and rising trade protectionism, Xinhua reported. President Lee told the Chinese delegation that China and South Korea have achieved tangible results toward a full restoration
of bilateral ties, pledging to support China’s effort in hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen later this year.
In separate talks with Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, the South Korean Foreign Ministry stated that officials discussed North Korea and bilateral and global issues. Cho Hyun told Parliament that the ministry was pursuing a summit between Lee and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC summit.
Keep reading