Ministry of Foreign Affairs "Analyzing Background of Wang Yi, Chinese Foreign Minister's Remarks"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that it is “fully aware and is analyzing the background and intentions” regarding Wang Yi, China’s State Councilor and Foreign Minister in charge of diplomacy, recently expressing opposition to the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Ministerial Meeting.

Earlier, at the ARF meeting held via video conference on the 6th, Vice Minister Wang said, “The South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises lack constructiveness under the current situation,” and argued that “since North Korea has suspended nuclear tests and long-range ballistic missile tests for several years, sanctions against North Korea should be eased to create an atmosphere for resuming dialogue.”

[Image source=Yonhap News]

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs commented on the 9th regarding Vice Minister Wang’s remarks on the joint exercises, saying, “Most of the international community sufficiently understands that the nature of the South Korea-U.S. joint exercises is annual and defensive, and that they are not threatening to any specific country, including North Korea.”

He added, “Nonetheless, it is unusual that China mentioned this issue at the ARF.”

At this meeting, Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, who spoke after Vice Minister Wang, did not specifically mention the joint exercises; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that the format of the meeting made interactive dialogue difficult.

The official said, “Considering that the meeting was held remotely via video conference, Minister Chung did not directly refute or make additional remarks regarding statements from specific countries during this meeting.”

Ambassador An Kwang-il, North Korea’s representative to the ASEAN Mission and Ambassador to Indonesia, who attended the meeting, did not mention the joint exercises and made general remarks expressing North Korea’s hope for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

Ambassador An mainly explained efforts related to COVID-19 prevention and reportedly expressed a position of striving for independent national development and national security assurance despite pressure from hostile forces.

Although he did not mention the restoration of inter-Korean communication lines, the ARF chairman’s statement, which includes North Korea’s participation, contained a message welcoming the resumption of communication lines.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that the chairman’s statements from the four ASEAN-related foreign minister meetings held this time, including the ARF, supported the South Korean government’s efforts to advance the peace process on the Korean Peninsula, including the restoration of communication lines, and emphasized the importance of dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.

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