Which Chinese officials are visiting Korea and what will they do during the visit?

Division-level officials from the foreign affairs offices of Beijing, Guangdong, Jiangxi and other Chinese regions will make a five-day visit through Friday. They will receive a briefing on bilateral relations and visit industrial and cultural facilities.

What is the Korea-China Future-Oriented Exchange Program?

The program was launched in 1999 to invite Chinese local government officials responsible for foreign affairs to Korea. The current visit is part of the 2026 program, which Seoul’s foreign ministry said supports continued exchanges and cooperation between local governments in the two countries.

Chinese officials to visit Korea to discuss bilateral ties, Saemangeum cooperation

Q: Why are Chinese local government officials visiting the Saemangeum national industrial complex?

The delegation will visit Saemangeum and relevant agencies to explore potential cooperation on the development project at the local-government level. The project is intended to create an industrial, business and tourism hub on Korea’s west coast.

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Summary

A delegation of Chinese local government officials will visit Korea this week to expand local-level exchanges and cooperation. The five-day visit through Friday includes briefings on bilateral relations and tours of industrial and cultural facilities. The officials will also visit the Saemangeum national industrial complex to explore cooperation on the development project. The visit is part of the 2026 Korea-China Future-Oriented Exchange Program.

Key Facts

The delegation includes division-level officials from the foreign affairs offices of Beijing, Guangdong, Jiangxi and other Chinese regions.
The officials will visit Saemangeum and relevant agencies to examine potential cooperation at the local-government level.
Saemangeum is a reclamation and development project on Korea’s west coast intended to become an industrial, business and tourism hub.
President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed promoting investment in Saemangeum at a summit in November 2025.
The Korea-China Future-Oriented Exchange Program was launched in 1999 to invite Chinese local government officials responsible for foreign affairs to Korea.

By Yonhap

Published Oct 19, 2026 2:20 pm KST

A rendition of Saemangeum International Airport / Korea Times file photo

A delegation of Chinese local government officials will visit Korea this week to explore ways to expand exchanges and cooperation between local governments, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday.

The delegation, which comprises division-level officials from foreign affairs offices of Beijing, Guangdong, Jiangxi and other regions, will make a five-day visit through Friday to receive a briefing on bilateral relations, and visit industrial and cultural facilities, according to the ministry.

Its itinerary also includes visits to the Saemangeum national industrial complex and relevant agencies to explore potential cooperation on the development project at the local government level.

Saemangeum is a large-scale reclamation and development project on Korea's west coast aimed at creating an industrial, business and tourism hub. At a summit in November 2025, President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed ways to promote investment in the complex.

The visit is part of the 2026 Korea-China Future-Oriented Exchange Program, which was launched in 1999 to invite Chinese local government officials responsible for foreign affairs to Korea.

"We will continue to support exchanges and cooperation between local governments in the two countries, building on ties established through the program," the ministry said in a release.

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