China Reveals Its Expectations of the New South Korean President

To wit:

New South Korean President Lee Jae-myung held his first talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday, as Lee looks to balance ties between Beijing and Seoul’s ally, Washington.

Xi told Lee that China and South Korea should work to take their strategic cooperative partnership “to a higher level” amid rising concerns over the future of global free trade, Xinhua said Xi had told Lee during talks over the telephone.

“China and South Korea should inject more certainty into (the) regional and international landscape,” Xi was quoted as saying, adding that the two countries “should jointly safeguard multilateralism and free trade, and ensure stable and smooth global and regional industrial and supply chains.”

Xi’s remarks were widely seen as a jab at U.S. President Donald Trump, who has targeted multilateral groupings with fiery criticism while also unleashing unilateral tariffs on countries across the globe, including allies like South Korea and rivals such as China.

Lee, for his part, invited Xi to South Korea to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, which will be held in the southeastern city of Gyeongju in November, the Yonhap news agency quoted a South Korean Presidential Office spokesperson as saying.

"Lee expressed hope that South Korea and China will actively promote exchanges and cooperation in various areas, including the economy, security, culture and people-to-people exchanges, based on the spirit of mutual benefit and equality," spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said.

Lee also asked Xi to play a constructive role in working toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula — a reference to Beijing's role as a key backer of nuclear-armed North Korea.

 

What can go wrong?