China Courts South Korea Ahead of Shenzhen Summit, but Old Disputes Remain Unresolved

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A Charm Offensive in Beijing

Wang said Beijing wants to deepen ties with Seoul in both traditional and new fields, naming artificial intelligence and biomedicine. According to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement, he described the two countries as neighbors who cannot change their geography and argued that good relations are the sensible choice for both. He also said relations have returned to the right path since the leaders of both countries began exchanging visits late last year.

Cho arrived for a two-day visit. His trip follows an invitation Wang extended during their August talks in Seoul. China's Foreign Ministry said it attaches great importance to the visit.

How Ties Got Here

Relations cooled under former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who moved Seoul closer to Washington and Tokyo. His successor, Lee Jae Myung, took office in June 2025 and has worked to repair the relationship. Lee hosted Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Gyeongju in late 2025 and made a state visit to China in January.

Beijing clearly values this thaw. Warmer ties with Seoul can loosen South Korea's links with the United States, a long-standing aim of Chinese diplomacy.

What Seoul Wants on the Table

Cho told reporters before leaving that he wanted to coordinate positions ahead of the APEC summit. He also planned to raise North Korea, including the chance of renewed talks between Washington and Pyongyang. Asked whether China would help broker such talks, he sounded unsure how active Beijing would be.

Another sore point is the Yellow Sea, where China and South Korea have overlapping maritime claims. Beijing has placed large steel structures in a jointly managed zone there since 2018 and says they are for fish farming. Seoul has objected to any one-sided installation in the zone, and analysts have warned they could later serve strategic purposes.

In January, after Lee raised the issue with Xi, China began moving one platform out of the zone. Seoul called this meaningful progress, but the wider boundary dispute remains unresolved. Yonhap reports that the structures are expected to come up again in Friday's talks.

Background: A Delicate Balancing Act

South Korea depends heavily on China for trade, yet it relies on the United States for its security. That tension shapes almost every decision in Seoul.

Observers have also noted that Beijing's statement after Xi's September 2025 meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un left out any mention of denuclearization. Many in Seoul read this as a possible shift in China's stance.

Outlook: Shenzhen Takes Center Stage

The APEC leaders' summit will be held in Shenzhen on November 18 and 19, and Lee is expected to attend. President Donald Trump has said he will also travel to China and expects to meet Xi there. He also expects a possible meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, though no such meeting has been finalized.

Trump has shown interest in reopening talks with Kim Jong Un. A South Korean presidential official said a Trump–Kim meeting at the summit is unlikely.

For Seoul, the challenge is to enjoy better relations with Beijing without giving up its alliance with Washington or its own security interests. Friday's talks showed how warm China's words can be. Whether the actions follow will become clearer in Shenzhen.

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Sources

1. Reuters, "China's top diplomat calls for expanding cooperation in meeting with South Korean minister," Nov 13, 2026: https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-top-diplomat-calls-expanding-cooperation-meeting-with-south-korean-2026-11-13/
2. Korea JoongAng Daily / Yonhap, "FM Cho heads to China for talks with Wang Yi on bilateral ties, prospects for N.K.-U.S. dialogue," Nov 13, 2026: https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/korea/fm-cho-heads-to-china-for-talks-with-wang-yi-on-bilateral-ties-prospects-for-nkus-dialogue/12971527
3. The Korea Times, "FM Cho to visit China this week for talks with Wang Yi on N. Korea, bilateral ties," Nov 12, 2026: https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/foreignaffairs/others/20261112/fm-cho-to-visit-china-this-week-for-talks-with-wang-yi-on-bilateral-ties
4. CSIS Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, "China Begins Relocating Structure from PMZ," Jan 2026: https://amti.csis.org/china-begins-relocating-structure-from-pmz/
5. The Korea Herald, on the Sept. 2025 Wang–Cho talks and China's omission of denuclearization: https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10577578
6. Reuters (via Internazionale), "Trump thinks he will meet Xi and Putin at China APEC summit," Nov 9, 2026: https://www.internazionale.it/ultime-notizie-reuters/2026/11/09/trump-thinks-he-will-meet-xi-and-putin-at-china-apec-summit

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