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South Korea
ChinaDiplomacy

China’s leader congratulates South Korean president-elect and voices hopes for stronger ties

  • Xi Jinping sends message to Yoon Suk-yeol on his victory and vows to cooperate to ‘bring welfare to the two nations and our peoples’
  • 30 years after their nations established official diplomatic ties, Yoon tells Chinese envoy to Seoul he’s certain their relations will develop further

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South Korea’s president-elect Yoon Suk-yeol met Chinese envoy to Seoul Xing Haiming on Friday, telling him: “The establishment of diplomatic relations was of great help to our two countries’ people in many ways. It also helped economic development”. Photo: AP Photo
Teddy Ng
Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korea’s president-elect Yoon Suk-yeol pledged to further elevate bilateral ties between the two nations, after concerns that their diplomatic relationship may be tested over Yoon’s pro-Washington stance.
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In a congratulatory message to Yoon on Friday, Xi said China and South Korea were close neighbours and important cooperative partners.

“Together with the South Korean side, the Chinese side is willing to firmly defend the original intentions of our establishment of diplomatic ties and deepen our friendly cooperation to promote the stable and long-term development of the China-South Korea strategic cooperative partnership and bring welfare to the two nations and our peoples,” Xi said, according to state news agency Xinhua.

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Who is South Korea’s newly elected president Yoon Suk-yeol and what are his plans?

Who is South Korea’s newly elected president Yoon Suk-yeol and what are his plans?
Yoon, a former prosecutor who has signalled a tougher stance on Beijing and promised to join a US-led regional bloc targeting China, narrowly defeated his rival Lee Jae-myung of incumbent President Moon Jae-in’s ruling party.

Yoon spoke to US President Joe Biden over the phone hours after his election victory, during which Biden emphasised US commitment to South Korea’s defence.

“Together, they affirmed the strength of the US-ROK alliance, which is the linchpin for peace, security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific,” the White House said, referring to the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s official name.

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“The two also committed to maintain close coordination on addressing the threats posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s [North Korea’s] nuclear and missile programmes.”

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