hankyoreh

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to visit South Korea around Nov. 25 to meet with Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha.

Chinese officials said that while nothing has yet been finalized, plans were being pursued as of Nov. 19 for Wang to visit South Korea on Nov. 25 to meet with Kang the following day. Wang appears likely to travel to South Korea after first visiting Japan for two days to meet with Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi. He initially planned to visit Japan and South Korea last month, but postponed his visit citing “internal schedule” issues.

During his South Korea visit, Wang appears likely to discuss a future visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping. In a South Korean visit in August, Yang Jiechi, a Chinese Community Party Politburo member for foreign affairs, expressed hope for a visit by Xi, referring to South Korea as “one of the first countries that [Xi] will visit when the COVID-19 situation stabilizes.” But with the global spread of the pandemic showing no signs of abating, it remains unclear whether a South Korea visit will materialize within the year.

Some observers in the foreign affairs community suggested that the South Korean government is not wholeheartedly pursuing a visit by Xi at a time when a new administration is poised to take office in the US under President-elect Joseph Biden. Indeed, some have also reported a degree of reluctance from Beijing to set a date for visiting South Korea based on what it perceives as the lack of clear results from past summits. On that basis, the two sides are seen as likely to exchange their views on the matter of Xi’s visit and discuss urgent bilateral issues such as the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and economic cooperation measures.

One reason Wang’s activities are drawing attention is that they come at a crucial moment with the Biden administration preparing to take office. The prevailing view among observers is that with the strategic rivalry between the US and China continuing even after he takes office, Biden’s emphasis on alliances suggests that he will work to step up trilateral cooperation with South Korea and Japan. In contrast, the Donald Trump administration has neglected cooperation with allies, effectively sitting on the sidelines amid the heated South Korea-Japan conflict that took place in the second half of 2019. With the Biden administration soon to take office, Beijing may have sensed the need to manage its relationships with Seoul and Tokyo through visits by Wang.

With China reportedly selecting South Korea and Japan as “partners for cooperation on cutting-edge technology,” Wang is also expected to call for cooperation in related areas. Wang’s visit to South Korea is his first in 11 months since December 2019.

By Kim Ji-eun, staff reporter

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