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There is growing interest in whether President Yoon Seok-yeol, who is visiting San Francisco, USA, to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, will be able to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a summit meeting.
The two leaders had a friendly chat for about three minutes in the conference room before the start of ‘APEC Session 1’ on the 16th (local time), but it is not yet decided whether a formal meeting will take place.
A high-ranking official from the presidential office said in a local press room briefing that day, “There is one more day left (until departure), and the South Korea-China summit is under discussion.”
He added, “However, due to the busy schedules of both leaders, we cannot guarantee whether it will actually take place.”
Previously, President Xi held a summit with US President Joe Biden for four hours on the 15th (local time). President Xi also held a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida that day.
In response to a question about why the South Korea-China meeting has not yet been confirmed while the US-China and China-Japan summits have taken place, the official explained, “China has to decide how compactly it can meet and return with which country after focusing all its energy on the meeting with the US.”
He further explained, “So after the US, it had a short meeting with Japan, and whether the South Korea-China summit will take place is a separate issue. Both countries are continuously assessing whether it would be good to meet and return through strategic judgment.”
In response to a question about whether the issue of recent military cooperation between North Korea and Russia came up in today’s meeting between President Yoon and President Xi, the official said, “We are dealing with the Russia-North Korea arms trade separately from China and conducting diplomacy. We have had several meetings, but we are not discussing the issue of Russia-North Korea military cooperation in connection with China.”
Meanwhile, President Yoon met President Xi in the conference room before the start of APEC Session 1 today, exchanged handshakes, and had a conversation with a bright smile.
The presidential office reported that the two leaders exchanged greetings of pleasure as they met again about a year after the G20 summit held in Bali, Indonesia, last November.
When President Yoon said, “I hope we achieve good results through this APEC,” President Xi reportedly responded, “I am confident of good results. I hope that South Korea and China will cooperate with each other for this.”
When President Yoon said, “Thank you for welcoming and hosting Prime Minister Han Deok-su during the Hangzhou Asian Games,” President Xi reportedly said, “I had a wonderful meeting with Prime Minister Han.”
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