Moon, Xi to hold summit in Beijing on Dec. 23
Chinese President Xi Jinping Reuters-Yonhap
By Do Je-hae
President Moon Jae-in and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold a summit meeting in Beijing on Dec. 23, according to Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday.
Moon will arrive in Beijing on the morning of Dec. 23 on his way to Chengdu, China, for the Korea-Japan-China summit on Dec. 24. He will also meet separately with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.
The upcoming Korea-China summit is the two leaders' first meeting since the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan, in June. Their last meeting in Beijing took place in December 2017 during Moon's state visit to China.
The Moon-Xi summit is drawing keen attention as it comes amid rising tension on the Korean Peninsula ahead of North Korea's self-imposed deadline for denuclearization talks with the U.S. North Korea has snubbed U.S. calls to return to negotiations, resulting in mounting speculation that a long-range missile test could be Pyongyang's next step. Under these circumstances, Moon is expected to seek Xi's support in resuscitating the dialogue between North Korea and the United States.
“During the Korea-China summit, President Moon will discuss ways to improve bilateral ties and boost exchanges between the two countries and also conduct in-depth discussions on the situation on the Korean Peninsula,” Han Jung-woo, deputy presidential spokesperson, said during a press briefing. “With Premier Li, the President will discuss practical measures to boost bilateral cooperation within the trilateral framework. Through the meetings with Xi and Li, the President aims to deepen the strategic partnership between Korea and China.”
The two countries' relations have suffered from a dispute over the decision by Washington and Seoul to deploy a U.S. missile defense system in Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, during the previous Park Geun-hye administration. Beijing has been protesting the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), saying it could hamper their security interests. Since the dispute began in 2017, Beijing has carried out “retaliatory” actions against Korean industries in China as well as banning group tourism to Korea.
Cheong Wa Dae did not give a clear response to whether Moon will specifically ask Xi to address the THAAD retaliation. “It is not appropriate to give details about the specific topics of discussion for the summit. The [removal of THAAD retaliation] could come up in the process of seeking consensus on the need to improve our relations,” a presidential aide said.
Moon is also expected to underline China's role in maintaining stability in the region. Xi is one of the few leaders who has earned the trust of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Kim held one-on-one meetings multiple times before and after his summits with U.S. President Donald Trump. Xi even visited Pyongyang in June, the first visit to North Korea by a Chinese president in 14 years. “We expect the Korean peace process to be discussed during the summit,” the aide said.
Moon is also expected to invite Xi to Korea next year. Cheong Wa Dae has been eying a visit by Xi to Korea in the early half of next year as a strong occasion to normalize bilateral relations following the THAAD row. Xi has not yet reciprocated Moon's 2017 visit to Beijing. The last time Xi was in Korea was during the Park administration in July 2014.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a rare visit to Seoul earlier this month, which was seen as a signal that the two countries could start arrangements for Xi's visit to Korea.
Moon will also hold a separate one-on-one with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Dec. 24 following the trilateral summit.