South Korean President Lee Jae Myung asked Chinese President Xi Jinping to make greater efforts to persuade North Korea to return to talks, as the two leaders on Saturday agreed on a set of steps to expand their economic and other ties. Their one-on-one meeting came hours after they and other Asia-Pacific leaders wrapped up an annual summit in South Korea with a joint statement pledging stronger economic cooperation, the AP reports. The two-day Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in the city of Gyeongju follows Xi and President Trump's agreement to dial back earlier steps and deescalate their trade war.
During his meeting with Lee, Xi called for Seoul to work with Beijing to "practice genuine multilateralism," according to Chinese state media, as he continued to position Beijing as the defender of the global trade order upended by Trump's sweeping tariffs. The Chinese state media reports on the Xi-Lee meeting didn't immediately carry any North Korea-related comments by Xi. However, Wi Sung-lac, Lee's national security director, said Lee outlined his strategy for achieving denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and "requested a constructive Chinese role to help realize the resumption of talks with North Korea." In response, Xi said "he would continue his efforts to help resolve issues involving the Korean Peninsula," Wi said.
China is North Korea's traditional ally and economic pipeline, but there are still questions about how much leverage it has on its impoverished neighbor. China has been long suspected by other nations of avoiding fully implementing UN sanctions on North Korea and sending clandestine aid shipments to help the North stay afloat and continue to serve as a bulwark against US influence on the Korean Peninsula. The North Korea item in the Lee-Xi meeting drew an irritated response from Pyongyang. North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong Ho slammed South Korea for talking about "its daydream" of realizing North Korea's denuclearization.
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