Editor TLN
June 9 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The South Korean authorities have summoned the Chinese ambassador, Xing Haiming, this Friday to protest his statements on relations between Seoul and Washington.
South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Chang Ho Jin considers Xing’s language unacceptable and his “nonsensical and provocative” comments could be considered interference in South Korean domestic politics, the ministry said in a statement. .
Xing said in a meeting with South Korean opposition leader Lee Jae Myung on Thursday night that he would welcome Seoul to distance itself from external factors when dealing with China, referring to deepening economic and security ties with Washington. Likewise, he insisted on the economic benefits of a friendly relationship with Beijing.
“In a context in which the United States is pressing China with all its might, there are those who are betting that the United States will win and China will lose. But this is a clearly wrong judgment, a failure to properly assess the flow history,” Xing said in a video shared on the YouTube channel of the main opposition party, the Democratic Party, reports the Bloomberg agency.
These remarks are likely alluding to the pressure the United States has brought to bear on its security partners — including South Korea, the Netherlands, Taiwan and Japan — to comply with its restrictions on chip sales. advanced technology and chip-making equipment to China, where South Korean semiconductor makers such as Samsung Electronics Co. and SK Hynix Inc. have major facilities.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been receptive to calls by the United States government — his country’s main security ally — to restructure global supply chains to reduce reliance on China. –its largest trading partner–, something that has provoked criticism from Beijing.
In this regard, Xing has assured that “China will continue to seek various measures to help Korean companies that invest in the country to continue growing.”
Yoon has stepped up military cooperation with the United States since taking office just over a year ago and has vowed to take a tough line on China. For his part, Chinese President Xi Jinping already urged his South Korean counterpart at a meeting at the end of 2022 to cooperate in high-tech manufacturing and work together to guarantee the security of supply chains.
