Wang Yi of China to Visit Korea on the 19th for Diplomatic Talks... Courtesy Call on President Lee and Lunch with Wi Seongrak the Following Day (Comprehensive)

Visit to Korea for Korea-China Bilateral Talks, First in About Five Years Since 2021

Attention on Whether President Lee’s Proposal for Multilateral Consultations on Ending the Korean War Will Be Discussed

Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China and Chinese Foreign Minister, will visit South Korea for two days starting on the 19th. This marks the first time in nearly five years since September 2021 that Minister Wang is visiting Korea for bilateral talks.

Wang Yi, Chinese Foreign Minister. Yonhap News Agency

On the 18th, Park Doosoon, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated at a government briefing in Seoul, "Minister Wang will officially visit Korea from the 19th to the 20th at the invitation of Foreign Minister Cho Hyun. The two ministers are set to hold a Korea-China Foreign Ministers' meeting and an official dinner on the 19th, during which they will engage in in-depth discussions on bilateral relations, the situation on the Korean Peninsula, as well as regional and international issues of mutual interest."

He added, "This Korea-China Foreign Ministers' meeting will take place for the first time in about 11 months since it was last held in Beijing last September. Ahead of the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Leaders' Summit in Shenzhen this November, this meeting is expected to serve as an opportunity to review the progress made toward fully restoring Korea-China relations and to formally begin preparations for the next stage of high-level exchanges."

According to officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minister Wang will hold the Korea-China Foreign Ministers' meeting with Minister Cho at around 6 p.m. on the 19th, followed by an official dinner. Since the launch of the Lee Jaemyung administration, this will be the first Korea-China Foreign Ministers' meeting held in Korea. Diplomatic authorities from the two countries had initially planned for Minister Wang to visit South Korea ahead of last fall's APEC Summit in Gyeongju, but the visit was canceled. As the visit now happens after nearly a year of delay, it is expected that key bilateral issues such as the lifting of the so-called "Hallyu ban" and the second-stage negotiations on the Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will be discussed.

On the morning of the 20th, Wang is scheduled to pay a courtesy call on President Lee Jaemyung at the presidential office. According to a press release from the presidential office, "President Lee will discuss the direction for the development of Korea-China relations and the regional situation, and will convey his regards to Chinese President Xi Jinping."

Wang is also scheduled to meet and have a luncheon with Wi Seongrak, Chief of the National Security Office. As Wang doubles as the Director of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission Office, his counterpart in Korea is Chief Wi. The presidential office stated, "There will be extensive exchanges of views on mutual concerns, including Korea-China relations and the situation on the Korean Peninsula, as well as regional and international issues." It is also expected that the meeting will include discussions on a proposed multilateral consultation for the termination of hostilities on the Korean Peninsula, which President Lee mentioned in his Liberation Day address.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.