In recent weeks Beijing and Seoul have signaled a desire to repair relations following the election of new South Korean President Moon
A senior foreign policy adviser to Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the importance of relations with South Korea on Friday as the two countries attempt to mend a rift in ties over the deployment of a U. S. missile-defense system to guard against North Korean threats.
State Councilor Yang Jiechi made the remarks at the opening of a second day of meetings between Chinese officials and special envoy Lee Hae-chan, a former South Korean prime minister.
They were expected to discuss ways of containing North Korea’s missile and nuclear weapons activities as well as the economic fallout over the deployment in South Korea of the U. S. missile defense system called THAAD.
Lee said South Korean President Moon Jae-In had dispatched him to China to keep communications open between the two countries “at a critical time.”
Seoul and Washington have argued that the missile system is aimed at North Korean aggression, while China sees it as a threat to its own security. It has retaliated against Seoul by suspending visits to South Korea by Chinese tour groups and trips to China by South Korean entertainers.
