The Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that South Korean President Lee Jae-myung will pay a state visit to China from January 4th to 7th. Relations were very strained during the former conservative presidency of Yoon Suk Yeol, while Lee Jae-myung is closer to China.
Chosun Daily in South Korea notes that this will be the first state visit to China by a South Korean president in 9 years. President Lee will hold a summit and state banquet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing from the 4th to the 6th, then visit Shanghai from the 6th to the 7th. Chosun quotes a government spokesman: “Judging that it was necessary to urgently coordinate with China on a peace plan for the Korean Peninsula to facilitate US–North Korea dialogue during US President Donald Trump’s visit to China in April next year, our side strongly requested an early visit to China.” They add that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has rejected denuclearization negotiations and inter-Korean dialogue.
President Lee is also expected to visit Japan in mid-January.
