China urges South Korea to avoid siding with the US
BEIJING — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged South Korea not to take sides between Beijing and Washington, saying the U.S. should abandon its “hostile” policy toward North Korea to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, reports BritPanorama.
Wang made the remarks in a meeting with South Korean National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac in Seoul on Thursday, where he also met South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.
“The fundamental solution to the tensions on the Korean Peninsula lies in addressing the root causes of the problem and urging the United States to abandon its hostile policy toward North Korea,” Xinhua, China’s state-run news agency, cited Wang as saying.
China hopes South Korea will “achieve genuine strategic autonomy, refrain from bloc confrontation and taking sides, and develop relations with major powers including China and the United States in parallel and without contradiction,” Wang added.
His remarks followed President Donald Trump’s announcement that he plans to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this year, noting that North Korea possesses 57 “very powerful” nuclear weapons.
Trump also ordered Pentagon officials to cut short joint military exercises with South Korea, citing his “very good relationship” with Kim. The U.S. maintains its official stance demanding North Korea’s denuclearization, which Pyongyang has consistently rejected.
In a separate development, North Korea test-fired almost a dozen short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea on Thursday, marking its third such test this month, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“China would be glad to see the peninsula move toward peaceful coexistence between South Korea and North Korea,” Wang remarked, calling for a restart of dialogue and restoration of trust.
In his discussions with Lee, Wang pushed for a friendly policy toward China, asserting that bilateral ties had “fully recovered” and made positive progress this year.
He emphasized that “a rational, pragmatic and positive policy toward China is entirely in line with South Korea’s interests and the trend of the times.”
Wang also highlighted the importance of completing second-stage talks with South Korea for a free trade agreement, advocating for regional economic integration amid rising trade protectionism.
