Park Wonsun: "China's Safety Is Our Safety"... Meets with New Chinese Ambassador

Park Wonsoon Seoul Mayor

[Asia Economy, Reporter Oh Sangdo] Park Wonsun, Mayor of Seoul, pledged cooperation regarding the novel coronavirus (Wuhan pneumonia), stating, "China's safety is our safety."

On the morning of February 12, in his office at City Hall, Mayor Park made these remarks during a meeting with Xing Haiming, the new Chinese Ambassador to South Korea. He said, "The Seoul Metropolitan Government wants to overcome the novel coronavirus together with China," adding, "Just as China's difficulties are our difficulties, only when China is safe can we be safe as well."

He continued, "There are no borders on the frontlines of disease prevention," recalling, "During the MERS outbreak, we faced significant difficulties, but the Beijing city government promised to send tourists, and in fact, many tourists did come."

In response, Ambassador Xing replied in Korean, "We are experiencing difficulties due to the novel coronavirus, and I am grateful for the support provided by the Republic of Korea, especially the Seoul Metropolitan Government." He also added, "During the 2003 SARS outbreak in China, President Roh Moo-hyun visited China."

Regarding the novel coronavirus situation, he predicted, "We are enforcing very strict controls, and the outbreak is expected to peak in mid or late February."

Ambassador Xing, who took office on February 7, is known as a "Korea expert" and has alternated between postings in Seoul and Pyongyang.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.