China's Wang Yi Explains the Circumstances of Kim Jong Un's and Kim Sung-nam's Visits to China at South Korea-China Foreign Ministers' Meeting

[Financial News] Wang Yi, China's foreign minister, explained recent contacts between North Korea and China at the meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, including North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's visit to Dandong and the trip to China by Kim Sung-nam, the Workers' Party of Korea's secretary for international affairs.
The Chinese side had described recent exchanges between North Korea and China as focused on economic cooperation, a senior South Korean Foreign Ministry official said. The official told reporters at the South Korean Embassy in China on the 14th, “(At yesterday's meeting,) we heard about Chairman Kim Jong Un's visit to Dandong, and also heard about Kim Sung-nam, the Workers' Party of Korea's secretary for international affairs.”
The official added that the Chinese side had described North Korea-China relations with a focus on economic cooperation rather than political issues, saying, “We were able to hear a relatively detailed account.”
Wang accompanied Chairman Kim on his visit to Dandong on the 24th of last month, and met with Kim, who had traveled to China, on the 5th of this month.
Cho met with Wang the previous day at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing to discuss bilateral relations and issues concerning the Korean Peninsula. Cho told reporters that day that they had discussed a range of topics, including recent exchanges between North Korea and China, the possibility of a meeting among U.S., Chinese and Russian leaders in connection with the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, and the possibility of a North Korea-U.S. summit. He emphasized that South Korea is a direct party to peace on the Korean Peninsula and explained that peace and stability on the peninsula also serve China's national interests. Cho said Wang agreed.

The Chinese side also discussed the possibility of a North Korea-U.S. summit at the meeting. Asked about the impression he had after the talks, a senior South Korean Foreign Ministry official said, “There is a possibility, but it is not very high.”
The main variables cited were the situation in the United States, the will of U.S. President Donald Trump, and whether North Korea would agree.
The South Korean government conveyed to the Chinese side its position that it should prepare for the possibility of North Korea-U.S. talks while ensuring that its national interests are not undermined.
The South Korean government also said that South Korea's interests as a party to the Korean Peninsula should not be excluded if the leaders of the United States, China and Russia meet in connection with the APEC Summit in Shenzhen. The official said, “If there is a U.S.-China-Russia meeting, it must not become a 'second Yalta Conference'; we have clearly stated to China as well as the United States that our national interests cannot be compromised on matters concerning the Korean Peninsula, and we made that point fully again yesterday.” The official added that the Chinese side also understood the South Korean government's position that it could not accept decisions recognizing North Korea as a nuclear-weapon state or running counter to the establishment of a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula.
The two ministers also exchanged views on anti-China sentiment in South Korea and the issue of China's structures in the Yellow Sea. Cho said they had agreed to prepare for a South Korea-China summit to be held in connection with APEC ahead of the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year, with the aim of creating changes that people in both countries can feel.

[email protected] Lee Jeong-hwa Reporter