China solicits South Korea’s support amid rift with US over Taiwan

Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his South Korean counterpart Park Jin in Qingdao, as Seoul performs delicate balancing act between Beijing and Washington
When US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited South Korea after Taiwan last week, President Yoon Suk-yeol did not meet her and held phone talks instead

South Korea

Kyodo

Published: 1:24am, 10 Aug 2022

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China on Tuesday called on South Korea to “maintain independence and self-reliance”, Yonhap News Agency said, in an apparent gesture to seek Seoul’s support amid Beijing’s growing rift with Washington over tensions in the Taiwan Strait.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his South Korean counterpart Park Jin during their meeting in the eastern port city of Qingdao that the two sides should not interfere with each other’s domestic affairs and not be affected by “external obstacles”, the agency said.

Park visited China at the request of Wang, becoming the highest-ranking official of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s administration launched in May to visit the neighbouring country. The two Asian countries will mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties later this month.

06:03

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Seoul faces the need to take a delicate balancing act between its security ally the United States and China, with which it maintains close economic ties.

When US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited South Korea after Taiwan last week, Yoon did not meet her and held phone talks instead. The presidential office then cited that Yoon was on holiday, but the decision fuelled speculation that he tried not to harm Seoul’s relations with China.

Pelosi’s trip to the self-ruled island, which Beijing regards as its own, has infuriated China.

Beijing has also been concerned about a US move to deepen cooperation in semiconductor production with South Korea, Taiwan and Japan. Wang said both China and South Korea should protect stable supply chains in a win-win approach, according to Yonhap.

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In response, Park stressed South Korea and China need to work together to overcome challenges through the stable management of supply chains, the news agency said.

On regional security, Park said peace and stability on the Korean peninsula are confronted with unprecedented threats and requested Beijing’s constructive role in persuading Pyongyang to seek dialogue instead of provocation, the report said.

Since the start of this year, North Korea has repeatedly conducted ballistic missile tests. In March, it launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile since November 2017.

Speculation has grown that the reclusive nation may soon carry out what would be its seventh nuclear test, and the first since September 2017.