hankyoreh

in Beijing

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi pressured Seoul on the THAAD issue in a May 18 meeting with Moon Jae-in administration special China envoy and Minjoo Party lawmaker Lee Hae-chan by referring to the “unpleasant experience” of then-Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn’s China visit just before the missile defense system‘s deployment in July 2016.

“When Hwang traveled to China in late June, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed having discussions through various channels on the THAAD issue in a way that wouldn’t harm either side’s interests. Shortly after that, [South Korea and the US] announced the THAAD deployment without any explanation to China ahead of time,” a source acquainted with the special envoys’ activities told a Hankyoreh reporter on May 20.

“Wang Yi spoke specifically to Lee Hae-chan about how embarrassing this was for the diplomatic ranks below the Chinese president,” the source said.

On June 30 of last year, Beijing reported that Xi had met with Hwang in China the day before and voiced the message that Seoul should “respect China’s reasonable security interests and handle the US’s THAAD deployment plans in South Korea cautiously and appropriately.”

At the time, ROK government didn’t explain how Hwang responded to Xi. But shortly afterward on July 8, South Korea and the US decided on and announced the deployment. While some had speculated that Beijing was upset over the situation, this is the first time the issue has been broached in an official diplomatic channel.

The meeting between Lee and Wang appears to have been quite tense.

“Wang Yi and the special envoy’s delegation had a heated discussion about THAAD, which apparently had Lee Hae-chan somewhat rattled,” said an associate who accompanied Lee. Wang also sounded a message of pressure toward the delegation in prefatory remarks to the media, urging the new administration in Seoul to “take effective action to remove obstacles to bilateral relations.”

Lee’s visit is highly significant as a first step in addressing current issues between Seoul and Beijing, with both sides recognizing the need to improve ties and agreeing to hold working-level discussions on the THAAD issue. But the potential for conflict remains, as seen with a controversy over the seating arrangement during the meeting with Xi.

Then-Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping

By Kim Oi-hyun, Beijing correspondent

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]