Korean President Park Geun-hye shakes hands with her Chinese counterpart Xi 

Jinping at a news conference following their talks at Cheong Wa Dae on July 3. (photos: Cheong Wa Dae) 

South Korean President Park Geun-hye and her Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping held talks at Cheong Wa Dae on July 3 and reaffirmed their opposition against North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons. 

A statement issued at the end of the summit talks, which contained the two leaders’ strong opposition to the North Korean nuclear issue may be viewed as a stronger-worded proof of their agreement than the joint communique announced after the two leaders’ talks in Beijing in June 2013. The latest statement may be China’s strong condemnation of North Korea’s move towards a fourth nuclear test, Korean analysts said. 

The latest joint communique, however, did not use the words “denuclearization of North Korea” as requested by South Korea. 

At a joint news conference following the summit talks President Park said, “I had in-depth discussions with President Xi to address the North Korean nuclear issue and to secure peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.” She went on say that the two leaders share similar views on seeking ways of denuclearizing North Korea and they both oppose against North Korea’s nuclear tests.

In return, President Xi said China backs the peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula and added that the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula should be made through dialogue and negotiations. 

South Korea and China signed 12 agreements, including two government-to-government deals, designed to turn their strategic partnership into a more comprehensive relationship. 

The two leaders, evaluating Korean-Chinese ties of late as the highest level of relationships ever seen, agreed to strengthen practical cooperation in all areas, including political, security, economic, and cultural fields. 

The two leaders agreed to conclude a high-level, comprehensive Free Trade Agreement within this year. Cheong Wa Dae senior economic secretary Ahn Jong-beom said it is the first time that the two leaders touched on the conclusion of the Korea-China FTA within this year in a joint statement, and the move is seen as “their firm determination to wrap up it at the earliest possible date.”

Korean government officials said the latest talks between the two countries would serve as an opportunity to narrow the scope of nontariff products for the opening of products and services. They went on to say that the two sides would work towards the conclusion of an FTA by making a wider opening of each country’s sensitive products –  the Korean agricultural produce market and the Chinese petrochemical, automobile, and steel markets. Some said chances are high the two countries will conclude an FTA deal on the sidelines of the APEC Summit, slated for early November in Beijing. 

The two sides signed an MOU to open a yuan-won direct trading center in Seoul, enabling clearance and settlement of the two currencies. Korea and China settled the bulk of $230 billion in trade between the two countries using the dollar. A Chinese bank in Seoul is to be designated as an official bank for yuan-won clearance and settlement. China has agreed to allow Korean institutional investors to be given an 80 billion yuan quota to invest in mainland Chinese equity purchases. 

In the political and security fields, the two sides agreed to regularly hold high-level strategic talks between Cheong Wa Dae’s national security chief and his Chinese counterpart, to exchange annual visits by the foreign ministers of the two counties, and to open a direct telephone line between the two nations’ defense ministries. 

Both sides inked agreements to upgrade the level of consular protection for each other’s nationals and to beef up efforts to tighten controls to prevent the spread of such diseases as avian influenza and foot-and-mouth disease. 

In the diplomatic field, the two countries agreed to resume negotiations at a higher level starting in 2015 to demarcate their executive economic zones.

The two leaders touched on Japan’s move to end a ban on collective self-defense by reinterpreting its pacifist constitution and to modify its 1993 apology for its wartime atrocities, including sexual enslavement of Korean women. The issues were not put in the statement, however. Korea and China agreed to share historical materials related to the Korean ‘comfort women’ in line with Korea’s plan to publish a white paper on the issue. 

Chinese President Xi, accompanied by a large group of political and business leaders as well as Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan, arrived in Seoul on July 3 for a two-day state visit. Xi’s trip to Seoul attracted keen attention in Korea and overseas, as Xi chose to visit South Korea ahead of North Korea, a close ally of China. The Seoul summit was their fifth meeting since they both took office last year. Park visited China last June on a single-nation trip.

On the same day, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Japan plans to relax some economic sanctions against North Korea in return for some progress in the issue of the latter’s abductions of Japanese citizens. 

On July 4, President Xi met National Assembly Speaker Chung Ui-hwa and attended a forum on business and trade with President Park. The Chinese president also delivered a speech to college students at Seoul National University and met South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won. 

The Korea-China Economic and Commerce Cooperation Forum, which took place at 

the Shilla Hotel in Seoul on July 4, brings together some 450 businesspeople from 

the two countries as well as Korean President Park and Chinese President Xi.

Korea-China Economic and Com-merce Cooperation Forum

The Korea-China Economic and Comm-erce Cooperation Forum, which took place at the Seoul Shilla Hotel on July 4, brought together some 450 businessmen from the two countries as well as Korean President Park and Chinese President Xi, the largest-ever such gathering since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1992.

Among the Korean business leaders on hand at the event were Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Chung Mong-koo, LG Group Chairman Koo Bon-moo, Chairman Kim Chang-keun of the SK SUPEX Committee, Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, and Kumho-Asiana Group Park Sam-koo. 

The Korean President Park and Chinese President Xi  each delivered a keynote speech at the forum and gave words of encouragement to the business leaders from the two countries. 

Kim Ki-mun, chairman of Korea Federat-ion of Small and Medium Business, said Chinese President Xi stressed the importance of business ties between China and Korea. He went on to say that Xi reiterated the conclusion of a Korea-China Free Trade Agreement within this year, and the expected progress of Korea-China business ties.

President Park said in her speech that the two business partners should take a new path that would spur the growth of the two countries and bring them closer together over the next 20 years.

Park Yongmann, chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), said President Xi’s state visit served as an opportunity to further cement economic cooperation between the two countries. 

Quoting President Park’s remark that if you want to do business, you should first become a friend, the KCCI chairman said the two countries will work together toward, deleveloping a win-win partnership, not resting on its laurels of becoming closer friends.  

Baidu founder and Chairman Lee Yanhong told the second session of the forum that the global internet hub is shifting to Korea and China. He expressed  hope that China, the world’s largest internet market, would collaborate in diverse fields with Korea, armed with advanced technology.

Four MOUs were signed between the two countries during the forum. First, LG Chem inked an MOU on the establishment of a joint venture to produce EV batteries with the Nanjing City Government. POSCO and Chongqing Iron & Steel signed an agreement to invest $3.3 billion in a mining, production and technology venture.