Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi May Visit South Korea as Early as Next Month

▲ Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi

Discussions are underway for a potential visit to South Korea by Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party and Foreign Minister, following the conclusion of the Beidaihe meeting, a private gathering of current and former Chinese leaders, next month.

If the visit takes place—which had been delayed due to closer North Korea-China ties and shifting dynamics in the Middle East—it is expected to revitalize high-level strategic communication between Seoul and Beijing, which has been stagnant.

According to diplomatic authorities on July 14, the two countries are closely coordinating details for Wang to visit South Korea after the Beidaihe meeting, which typically takes place between early and mid-August.

A Foreign Ministry official told SBS, "We are in close working-level consultations with the Chinese side regarding exchanges between the foreign ministers of South Korea and China," adding, "We welcome a visit by Foreign Minister Wang to follow up on the implementation of the outcomes from the South Korea-China summit."

Should the visit be finalized, Wang is expected to hold talks with Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and, in accordance with protocol, pay a courtesy call to President Lee Jae-myung.

The agenda is expected to cover follow-up measures to the South Korea-China summit, bilateral cooperation in economic and cultural sectors, as well as major issues such as the North Korean nuclear issue and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

However, it is understood that a bilateral foreign ministers' meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which will be held in Manila, Philippines, later this month, is not currently being pursued.

The ARF is likely to highlight tensions between China and some ASEAN member states over the South China Sea as a key issue.

In this context, it is reported that Seoul is cautious about pushing for a meeting during the ARF, mindful that a separate session between the two foreign ministers could create the impression that South Korea is aligning with China or lending weight to the Chinese position on the South China Sea issue.

Consequently, the two sides appear to be prioritizing coordination for a separate visit by Wang to discuss bilateral issues rather than holding a meeting on the sidelines of the ARF.

Previously, the government sought to maintain the momentum of improving South Korea-China relations through a visit by Wang following President Lee's state visit to China in January. However, the visit, initially targeted for the first quarter, did not materialize due to circumstances on the Chinese side.

Wang subsequently visited North Korea in April ahead of the U.S.-China summit, and it is reported that the Chinese side shared the results of that visit with the South Korean government.

Meanwhile, it is known that Chinese officials have been showing a tendency to avoid the phrase "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" in consultations with the South Korean side.

While China maintains that its policy toward the Korean Peninsula remains consistent, the South Korean government is closely monitoring the trend of China omitting specific references to the goal of "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

This atmosphere is linked to the 2024 South Korea-China-Japan summit joint declaration, where denuclearization was framed as each country's "respective position" rather than a shared goal of the three nations, as well as the omission of the phrase "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" in China's defense white paper released last November.

Within and outside the government, there are interpretations that China may be viewing North Korea's nuclear program as a matter to be managed rather than a problem to be solved, effectively tacitly condoning the North's possession of nuclear weapons.

On June 17, the government conveyed to the Chinese side that the spread of the so-called "theory of tacit condonement of North Korea's nuclear possession" is undesirable, but it is reported that China repeated its stance that there is no change in its existing policy toward the Korean Peninsula.

Accordingly, if Foreign Minister Wang visits South Korea, discussions are expected to take place to directly confirm China's principles on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and its North Korea policy, as well as to urge China to play a constructive role in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)

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