Opposition Lawmakers Visiting China Amid the 'Sing Haiming Incident'... Concerns Over 'Yoon Government Check'

Opposition Task Force: "To Support Economic Activities"
China Seen Increasing Contact with Opposition Parties

Sing Haiming, the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea, sparked controversy with a provocative remark during a meeting with Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, while it has been confirmed that Democratic Party lawmakers are currently visiting China. Although they drew a line by stating the visit is for economic exchanges with China, concerns have been raised that the timing of the visit is inappropriate amid the diplomatic controversy.

According to the Democratic Party's Livelihood Economic Crisis Countermeasures Committee on the 14th, Democratic Party lawmakers Kim Tae-nyeon, Hong Ik-pyo, Ko Yong-jin, Hong Ki-won, and Hong Sung-guk, who are members of the committee, will stay in China from the 12th to the 15th to carry out their schedule.

The delegation plans to hold meetings with domestic companies operating in China, visit the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade. They intend to convey the demands of the domestic economic sector at these venues.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, amid the recent escalation of conflicts between South Korea and China, there are also criticisms that China might be deliberately increasing contact points with the opposition party. The Chinese Communist Party's NPC invited Kim Jin-pyo, the National Assembly Speaker from the Democratic Party, in March. Additionally, Ambassador Sing met with opposition leader Lee before meeting with ruling party leaders such as Kim Ki-hyun.

The committee stated, "The visit is to observe the economic situation in China following the lifting of COVID-19 lockdown measures and to support the economic activities of Korean companies. The schedule was arranged long ago, centered on economic think tanks, and contacts with Chinese government officials will mainly be with those responsible for economy and trade."

Regarding this, Lee Jae-myung said to reporters on the same day about the Democratic Party lawmakers' visit to China, "Rather than making a fuss simply about the visit to China, I hope that the national dignity of the Republic of Korea will be well maintained during the visit."

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