China’s top diplomat stresses SKorea ties amid row with US

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — China’s top diplomat on Thursday stressed the importance of bilateral relations while meeting senior officials in South Korea, where there is growing concern the country is becoming squeezed between China, its biggest trading partner, and military ally the United States.

After meeting South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyungwha, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters that his visit during the coronavirus pandemic shows how much Beijing values its relations with Seoul. He called for stronger cooperation over anti-virus efforts, trade and finding a peaceful solution to a nuclear standoff with North Korea.

When asked whether Beijing was pressing Seoul to choose a side amid rising U.S.China tensions over trade, security and other issues, Wang said “America is not the only nation in the world.”

“There are 190 countries and each of them are sovereign nations,” he said. “They include China and South Korea, which are close neighbors and should visit each other more often, like relatives.”

Wang later met with President Moon Jae-in, who acknowledged bilateral accomplishments in fighting the virus and maintaining essential business exchanges despite tightened border controls, according to a pool report.

Moon also urged Beijing to continue serving a “constructive role” in international efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula and helping improve relations between the rival Koreas.

Wang replied that Seoul and Beijing have set a “role model” for international cooperation amid the pandemic and conveyed a message by Chinese President Xi Jinping that he considers his “friendship and trust” with Moon as “very important.”

South Korea has been eager to repair its relations with China, its biggest trading partner, which reacted furiously to Seoul’s decision to deploy an advanced U.S. anti-missile system on its soil in 2016 to better cope with North Korean threats.