SEOUL - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed hope during a visit to South Korea on Thursday that Seoul will firmly pursue a friendly policy toward China, while calling for an end to what he described as the United States' hostile policy toward North Korea to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
The trip to South Korea by the top Chinese diplomat underscored the two countries' eagerness to bring the bilateral ties fully back on track after souring over Seoul's deployment of a U.S. missile defense system in 2017 and came as U.S. President Donald Trump has ramped up his criticism against the Asian ally.
Meeting South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday, Wang hailed the "comprehensive restoration of China-South Korea relations" and said he hopes Seoul will "firmly pursue a friendly policy toward China," with next year's 35th anniversary of diplomatic ties providing an opportunity to promote greater progress in the strategic partnership, according to China's official Xinhua News Agency.
Lee told Wang that the two countries have been producing "clear results" in the "full restoration" of bilateral relations since his meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping in two consecutive years, the South Korean presidential office said.
Wang also held talks with South Korean National Security Adviser Wi Sung Lac, during which he expressed hope that South Korea will pursue "genuine strategic autonomy, refrain from bloc confrontation or taking sides, and develop its relations with China, the United States and other major countries in a mutually compatible manner," according to Xinhua.
Speaking about the situation on the Korean Peninsula, Wang said the "fundamental way to ease tensions is to address the root causes and to push for the United States to abandon its hostile policy" toward North Korea, according to the news agency.
He reiterated Beijing's warning against "Japan's right-wing forces that seek to turn back the wheel of history" and stressed that "the resurgence of Japanese militarism must never be allowed."
Relations between Seoul and Beijing soured over South Korea's deployment of the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system, known as THAAD, to counter North Korean threats, a move that drew fierce opposition from China, which said the system's radar could be used to spy on its territory.
Ties have been on the mend since Lee and Xi held their first bilateral summit on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, in November last year, followed by Lee's state visit to Beijing in January.
With China set to host this year's APEC summit in Shenzhen, Wang said Beijing expects support from South Korea, while vowing to ensure thorough preparations to achieve outcomes that include high-level exchanges between the two countries. Lee, in return, said Seoul will fully provide necessary support, the presidential office said.
The Lee-Wang meeting came after China's top diplomat told Foreign Minister Cho Hyun on Wednesday that Beijing will play a "constructive role" to ensure peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
South Korea's Foreign Ministry said in a press release that Cho asked Wang to help bring North Korea to the table for dialogue, without elaborating.
During their meeting, Cho presented South Korea's blueprint to achieve peaceful coexistence with North Korea on the Korean Peninsula, which was disclosed during Lee's address last week.
Lee proposed discussions among "directly concerned parties" to end the 1950-1953 Korean War and transform the peninsula's armistice into a regime of peace, saying such talks could find "effective ways" to halt the advancement of the North's nuclear capabilities.
Wang said Beijing hopes the two Koreas can pursue a path of peaceful coexistence, according to the South Korean Foreign Ministry.
Trump said Wednesday he expects to hold a face-to-face meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un by the end of this year.
Trump has ordered that the ongoing annual joint military drill between the United States and South Korea should be shortened, saying that it is "not only costly" but also sends a signal that it is "totally inappropriate and hostile" to North Korea.
North Korea said the scaling back of the exercise would not stop it viewing the allies as hostile.
