SEOUL to host the first such trilateral summit in more than four years with China and Japan later in May, an important task at hand is to reconcile strained bilateral relations with Beijing.
As South Korea gears up While the administration under South Korean President Yoon Sukyeol has seen vastly improved ties with Japan in the last two years, ties with China have been decidedly frosty.
The deterioration in ties was clearly visible in 2023, as South Korea moved closer to the United States, its security ally. The US-Japan-South Korea summit held at Camp David in August 2023 which China slammed as a "hypocritical anti-China pantomime" further exacerbated the divide between South Korea and Japan on one side and China on the other.
Mr Yoon's past remarks about the Taiwan Strait being a "global issue", and the need to maintain the status quo, had also met with strong rebukes from Beijing.
To mend ties, South Korea dispatched Foreign Minister Cho Taeyul on a visit to Beijing on May 13 and 14, the first in more than six years by a South Korean foreign minister. The visit is seen as a step towards normalising relations, a move that the Chinese have welcomed.
In his opening remarks at the start of a four-hour meeting with Mr Cho, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi expressed hope that bilateral relations with South Korea will develop further "without interference".
Bu hikaye The Straits Times dergisinin May 15, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye The Straits Times dergisinin May 15, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
RealVantage breaks down walls in real estate investing for the masses
Real estate fund targets investments in middle market real estate assets
CROATIA LIFT CONFIDENCE
They beat Portugal 2-1 away in final friendly before Euro, sending warning to Spain, Italy
Jacobs wants to go faster after retaining 100m title
Home favourite Marcell Jacobs vowed to improve his time and technique ahead of the Paris Olympics after he retained his European 100m crown in Rome as Italy basked in their bountiful weekend with five golds to surge to the top of the medal table.
Workers from dorms drinking, sleeping by roadside at night
Motorists say they endanger themselves and other road users with such behaviour
US 'standing strong' with Ukraine in Russia battle, Biden vows
In a swipe at Trump, he emphasises value of US-European alliances on state visit to France
Seoul accused of modern slavery with seasonal worker scheme
Filipino workers say brokers charged steep fees, cheated them out of promised wages
Terrorist attacks dampen Chinese interest in key corridor project with Pakistan
Political instability, economic distress in the country causing serious delays, say analysts
Proposal to allow pets on China’s trains draws cheers and jeers
Some welcome prospect of trips with pets, but others raise objections over fur, faeces
Layoff worries mount as Indonesia sees flood of illegal imports
Smuggled goods compete unfairly with locally made products, economists say
Malaysia's data centre push sparks concern over power, water usage
It could strain supplies in the coming years, particularly in industrialised states: Experts