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
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.
Pelosi’s trip to the self-ruled island, which Beijing regards as its own, has infuriated China.
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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.
Speculation has grown that the reclusive nation may soon carry out what would be its seventh nuclear test, and the first since September 2017.