Lee Hyo-jin covers the Bank of Korea, the banking industry and broader financial news. Her previous beats include foreign affairs, North Korea and general reporting on Korean society.
ANALYSIS Lee-Xi summit exposes differences on key security issues
President Lee Jae Myung takes a selfie with Chinese President Xi Jinping following a state dinner in Beijing, Monday. Lee used a Xiaomi smartphone gifted by Xi on Nov. 1, 2025, during their summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. Joint Press Corps
By Lee Hyo-jin
Despite Seoul’s hopes, China remains silent on North Korea’s denuclearization
A high-stakes summit between the leaders of South Korea and China exposed lingering gaps on key security issues, analysts said Tuesday, even as the two neighbors agreed on the importance of restarting dialogue with North Korea.
President Lee Jae Myung met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday, in the first visit by a South Korean president to China in a little over eight years, as both sides moved cautiously to stabilize relations after a prolonged period of strain.
Lee’s trip, a reciprocal visit following Xi’s trip to Korea last November, signaled what officials in Seoul described as "a full restoration of bilateral ties" after relations had grown chilly in recent years amid security and trade friction.
Following the meeting, the two leaders oversaw the signing of 14 memorandums of understanding covering areas such as science, technology and trade.
On the security front, however, progress appeared limited.
South Korea’s presidential office said the two leaders reaffirmed that peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula — an apparent reference to the denuclearization of North Korea — are shared interests, and confirmed China’s willingness to play a constructive role.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs made no reference to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula in its readout of the summit.
Doo Jin-ho, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, said China’s unresponsiveness on the North Korean issue fell short of South Korea’s expectations.
"Beijing did not appear to roll up its sleeves to the extent Seoul may have hoped, nor did it take a particularly forward-leaning stance on the North Korean nuclear issue,” Doo said.
"But on the positive side, the primary purpose of President Lee’s visit was to stabilize bilateral relations with China, and that goal appears to have been achieved. That in itself could serve as a stepping stone going forward."
Seoul has hoped Beijing would take a more active role in addressing Pyongyang’s nuclear program, a position China has become increasingly reluctant to embrace publicly.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, left, shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a summit at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Sept. 4, 2025. Reuters-Yonhap
In the past, China consistently maintained a stance of "nonacceptance" of North Korea’s nuclear weapons. But that approach has seen a subtle shift in recent years as Beijing’s ties with Pyongyang have improved. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s appearance alongside Xi at a large-scale military parade in Beijing last September was widely seen as a symbolic moment underscoring closer ties between the two countries.
"For South Korea, reestablishing high-level diplomacy with its largest neighbor and trade partner is understandably of strategic importance," said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University.
"Yet despite Seoul’s diplomatic efforts, China has not adopted more internationally responsible policies on maritime disputes or Pyongyang’s nuclear threats. The two sides merely agreed to continue discussions over competing claims in the West Sea, while North Korean denuclearization was not even publicly mentioned."
Beyond North Korea, the Lee-Xi summit also highlighted China’s expectation that South Korea move closer to Beijing as regional rivalries intensify.
In his opening remarks, Xi said the two countries "should stand firmly on the right side of history and make correct strategic choices."
The Chinese leader also referred to the two countries’ shared history of resisting Japanese militarism and emphasized the need to "defend the victorious outcomes of World War II" and safeguard peace and stability in Northeast Asia.
The remarks were widely interpreted as a signal of Beijing’s demand for a united front with Seoul as tensions with Tokyo deepen over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments on Taiwan.
This could pose a diplomatic challenge for Lee, who is expected to travel to Japan later this month for a summit with Takaichi. Lee has sought to remain neutral in the growing friction between China and Japan, saying at a press conference last month that "taking sides only worsens tensions."