Wang Yi says Lee Jae-myung's 'right choice' brought relations back on track... South Korea-China relations enter a honeymoon phase, but hidden bills remain

- Wang Yi pays courtesy call on President Lee Jae-myung at the Blue House on the 20th... completing his first official visit to South Korea in 5 years
- China says "pragmatic pro-China policy serves South Korea's interests"... pressing for economic cooperation including swift conclusion of South Korea-China FTA Phase 2
- President Lee responds: "Mutually crossing 10 million reciprocal visits expected this year... looking forward to strengthening comprehensive cooperation"
- State visit to China foreshadowed around November's APEC Summit in China... a test for strategic balance amid the South Korea-U.S. alliance

Diplomatic relations between South Korea and China are rapidly moving past the thaw and entering a full-fledged honeymoon phase. China's top diplomatic chief, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, praised President Lee Jae-myung's foreign policy stance as a "right decision," officially evaluating that bilateral relations have completely returned to a normal track.
According to political and diplomatic circles on the 20th, Wang, who is on an official visit to South Korea for the first time in 5 years, paid a courtesy call on President Lee at the Blue House on this day to discuss strategic cooperation measures between the two countries. During the meeting, Wang stated, "Thanks to President Lee's right decision, South Korea-China relations have returned to the normal track," emphasizing that the current administration's rational and pragmatic policy toward China aligns with South Korea's national interests and the trends of the times.

Behind the amicable diplomatic rhetoric lie clear economic and strategic demands from China. Wang highlighted China as a massive market and called for joint responses against global trade protectionism. In particular, ahead of the 35th anniversary of diplomatic ties next year, he officially demanded the swift conclusion of the stagnant South Korea-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Phase 2 negotiations, pressing for tighter economic alignment.

President Lee also responded positively. Expressing satisfaction with the rapid improvement in South Korea-China relations, President Lee noted, "It is expected that reciprocal visits by the citizens of both countries will surpass 10 million this year." He then expressed high expectations for strengthening comprehensive cooperation with China moving forward. Minister Wang previously held a dinner meeting with Foreign Minister Cho Hyun on the 19th, and held consecutive meetings with National Security Office Director Wi Sung-lac on this day.

The government is pushing for a visit to China timed with President Lee's attendance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China, this November. However, experts point out that as uncertainties in the South Korea-U.S. alliance grow—such as scaled-back joint military drills—sophisticated diplomatic tightrope walking is required to ensure that accepting China's overt push for alignment does not appear as a crack in the South Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation.