President Lee Jae Myung is scheduled to engage in summit discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping, with a focus on aligning efforts regarding North Korea, as well as exploring opportunities for enhancing economic partnerships and promoting cultural interactions.
The discussions occurred approximately two months following the leaders' meeting during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju in early November, which took place during Xi's first visit to South Korea in 11 years.
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He arrived in Beijing for a four-day official trip to China, shortly after North Korea launched unspecified ballistic missiles towards the East Sea, in what marked its inaugural weapons test of the year.
The visit signifies Lee's inaugural visit to China since assuming office in June the previous year, and it also marks the first official trip to China by a South Korean president since 2019.
As South Korea aims to effectively navigate its ties with China, a crucial trade, tourism, and peace collaborator on the Korean Peninsula, it also endeavors to uphold a robust partnership with the US through the Lee administration's pragmatic foreign policy strategy.
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Lee is anticipated to request China's assistance during the meeting in enhancing strained relations with Pyongyang and advancing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, a top priority on his government's international policy list.
Before the summit, Lee is set to participate in a Korea-China economic conference in Beijing focused on the enhancement of collaboration in various sectors such as artificial intelligence, renewable energy, logistics, and tourism. A sizable corporate delegation, composed of prominent figures such as Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, and LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, is set to participate in the upcoming forum.
National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac anticipates that the two parties will execute over 10 memorandums of understanding to facilitate collaboration across diverse sectors. Seoul aims to further discussions on cultural exchanges as it seeks to expand the availability of Korean content in China, a goal impeded by unofficial limitations following South Korea's installation of a US missile defense system in 2017.
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Potentially contentious matters may be brought up, such as China's installation of steel structures within the shared maritime boundaries in the Yellow Sea, a development that South Korea views as possibly setting a precedent for asserting territorial rights. Given the heightened tensions regarding Taiwan in light of China's recent extensive military exercises in close proximity to the island, it is anticipated that Lee will be under scrutiny to articulate Seoul's stance on the matter, seen by Beijing as a fundamental national concern.