'Symbolic restart': Xi’s South Korea visit signals cautious reset of ties amid shifting geopolitics
For the first time in more than a decade, Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Korea, traveling to the historic city of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, to hold bilateral talks with President Lee Jae Myung and attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders' Meeting. While the trip carries limited expectations for immediate breakthroughs, experts see it as a carefully calibrated step toward resetting strained Korea-China ties. His last visit in 2014, at the height of Seoul-Beijing relations, culminated in the South Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which took effect in 2015. At the time, then-President Park Geun-hye sought Chinese support for her vision for Korean unification, focusing on trust-building, humanitarian aid and reconciliation. Despite North Korea’s criticism of the initiative, Beijing referred to it in a joint statement during their Seoul summit in July that year. Fast-forward to September 2025, when North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited China as it put on a massive military parade commemorating 80 years since Japan’s formal surrender
