Korea’s Lee, in Beijing, sees full restoration of China ties in 2026

BEIJING, Jan 5 (Reuters) – South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Monday that he wants to open a “new phase” for relations with China, after meeting with President Xi Jinping during Lee’s first trip to Beijing since taking office in June.

“This summit will be an important opportunity to make 2026 the first year of full-scale restoration of Korea-China relations,” Lee said. “I believe that efforts to develop the strategic cooperation and partnership between the two countries into an irreversible trend of the times will continue.”

It was Lee’s second meeting with Xi in just two months, a sign of Beijing’s keen interest in boosting economic collaboration and tourism with Seoul as China’s relations with Northeast Asia’s other big economy Japan have sunk to the lowest point in years.

Hours before the visit, North Korea launched at least two ballistic missiles, its first such launches in two months. Leader Kim Jong Un cited the need for Pyongyang to maintain a powerful nuclear deterrent.

Xi said China and South Korea should make “correct strategic choices”, adding that the two countries “shoulder important responsibilities in safeguarding regional peace”.

Xi’s comments suggested China wants Seoul to side with Beijing rather than Washington over cross-strait relations with Taiwan, and respect Beijing’s position regarding the U.S. seizure of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, said Seok Byoung-hoon, a professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.

COOPERATION AGREEMENTS SIGNED, ECONOMIC EXPANSION EYEDThe two countries signed 15 agreements at the summit, according to South Korean and Chinese broadcasters.

Lee, elected in a snap election in June, has promised to strengthen ties with the United States without antagonising China, while seeking to reduce tensions with the North.

Beijing, for its part, has been seeking stronger ties with Seoul since a rupture with Japan, whose Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in November that Tokyo could take military action if Beijing attacked Taiwan.

Chinese and South Korean companies signed nine cooperation agreements, South Korea’s Trade Ministry said, naming Alibaba International, Lenovo and South Korean retailer Shinsegae among companies that signed deals.

Lee arrived for his four-day state visit on Sunday, along with a delegation of more than 200 South Korean business leaders including Samsung Electronics Chairman Jay Y. Lee, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, and Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung.

South Korea and China need to expand economic cooperation in artificial intelligence, Lee said, and could also collaborate in consumer goods such as household goods, beauty, food products and cultural content such as movies, music, games and sports.

However, South Korean Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik said in a radio interview on Monday that Beijing was unlikely to lift an unofficial ban on Korean culture anytime soon.

China and South Korea are expected to discuss matters such as supply-chain investment, the digital economy and cultural exchanges during Lee’s visit, China’s state broadcaster CCTV said.

(Reporting by Jihoon Lee and Joyce Lee in South Korea, Ethan Wang and the Beijing newsroom; Writing by Farah Master; Editing by Ed Davies, Sonali Paul, Peter Graff)