Cho Hyun in China: "North Korea-U.S. Talks Possible... Kim Jong Un Unlikely to Be Invited to APEC"
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun to Hold South Korea-China Talks with Wang Yi in Beijing on the 13th
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, who traveled to Beijing, China, for a South Korea-China foreign ministers' meeting, said on the 13th, "There is a possibility of talks between North Korea and the United States," adding, "We plan to discuss this comprehensively with China."
Speaking with The Asia Business Daily at Gimpo International Airport in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, on his way out of the country that morning, Cho said the main agenda for the South Korea-China foreign ministers' meeting would include "overall South Korea-China relations, including issues related to North Korea, and matters requiring coordination between the two countries ahead of the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) meeting."
However, he said he thought it unlikely that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would make a "surprise appearance" at APEC, which will be held next week in Shenzhen, China. Cho said, "It does not seem very likely that China will actively invite Kim to this APEC meeting or do anything like that." Since this APEC leaders' meeting, hosted by China as the chair, is a multilateral diplomatic forum attended by leaders of major countries, the possibility of an unexpected event that would shift excessive attention to "North Korea-U.S. talks" appears to have been effectively ruled out.
However, the assessment is that the possibility of North Korea-U.S. talks remains, and that the question is only when they will happen. Cho also said China was willing to mediate talks between North Korea and the United States.
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Cho's visit to China is a return visit in response to an invitation from Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs of the Communist Party of China and foreign minister, who visited South Korea in August. The South Korean and Chinese foreign ministers are scheduled to hold a meeting followed by a dinner that afternoon. With President Lee Jae Myung set to attend the APEC leaders' meeting, a South Korea-China summit is considered likely to take place on the occasion, and preliminary coordination of the agenda is expected.
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