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South Korean President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Blue House on Nov. 26 of last year. (Yonhap News)

South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Chung Eui-yong had his first telephone conversation with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi since taking office.

In their conversation, Chung and Wang reaffirmed their commitment to a future South Korea visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping and agreed on plans to step up bilateral cooperation toward the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

In a Feb. 16 press release on the telephone meeting between the two ministers, South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) explained, “Minister Wang reaffirmed his commitment to a South Korea visit by President Xi, while both ministers agreed to maintain communication so that Xi’s visit occurs quickly once the COVID-19 situation has stabilized and the conditions are in place.”

The two ministers were also reported to have “exchanged views on the regional political situation, including the Korean Peninsula, and agreed to strengthen their bilateral cooperation to keep the Korean Peninsula situation on a stable footing and lay the groundwork for substantive advancements in the complete denuclearization of the peninsula and the establishment of a permanent peace regime.”

After taking office on Feb. 9, Chung held telephone calls on Feb. 12 — the Lunar New Year holiday — with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. In a possible reflection of the souring of ties with Tokyo, he has yet to speak by telephone with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi.

The same day, the Chinese Foreign Ministry released a statement in which it said Wang had clearly indicated to Chung in their conversation that “China is in favor of regional cooperative mechanisms featuring openness and inclusiveness, and opposes diving the world along ideological lines.”

The remarks, which were not included in the MOFA press release, appeared to push back against the China policies of US President Joe Biden, who has sought to hem Beijing in by joining forces with allies who share democratic values.

Commenting on the Korean Peninsula political situation, Wang said, “Developments in the peninsula’s political environment are tied to key Chinese and South Korean interests. The different countries need to boost their communication and cooperation so that we can achieve peace, stability and denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.”

By Gil Yun-hyung, staff reporter

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