South Korean President Lee Jae Myung travelled to Beijing and Shanghai this week, meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and heralding the “full-scale restoration” of bilateral ties after years of strained relations.
His trip to China, the first state visit by a South Korean president since 2017 (Moon Jae-in visited China for a working visit and trilateral summit in 2019), comes at a time of acute unease in northeast Asia, as China concludes massive military exercises around Taiwan, and North Korea — never to be outdone — launches ballistic missiles in a show of force. China’s monthslong dispute with Japan also deepened this week: Beijing banned the export of dual-use goods to Japan, a move Tokyo labelled “absolutely unacceptable.”
Lee, for his part, said his visit would be “an important opportunity to make 2026 the first year of full-scale restoration of Korea–China relations.” With his trip and talk, he has acted on pledges made during last year’s election campaign. Lee explained his approach in his inauguration speech, pledging to engage “neighbouring countries from a perspective of national interest and pragmatism.”
Following a 90-minute meeting on Monday, Lee and Xi agreed to bolster joint work on critical minerals, progress on negotiations regarding services and investments under the China–South Korea Free Trade Agreement (in effect since 2015), and signed MOUs spanning supply chains, climate change, and more.
Lee brought 200 South Korean business leaders with him to China, facilitating an “expected” 30 business deals.
The floor leader of South Korea’s rival People Power Party called the summit “an event-oriented meeting that secured almost no practical diplomatic or security benefits.” Critics also pointed out the lack of a leader-level joint statement and decried the absence of any tangible commitments on North Korea.
Come one, come all
Lee is not the only leader engaging China: Ireland’s Taoiseach (prime minister), Micheál Martin, is wrapping up a five-day trip to China, the first trip by an Irish leader to the country in 14 years, while French President Emmanuel Macron and Spanish King Felipe VI visited last month. Xi also spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 31.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, will visit China next week, the first time a Canadian leader has visited the country since 2017.
In a December interview with CBC, Carney said Ottawa would not seek a “deep relationship” with Beijing in areas such as “artificial intelligence, critical minerals, and defence.”
But Carney is seeking a broader reset with China, focusing principally on economic opportunities — especially in energy, and resolving tariffs on agricultural goods — and largely putting contentious issues, such as human rights and labour, on the back burner.
On January 2, the Government of Canada updated its webpage on Canada–China relations, deleting references to China’s “human rights abuses, such as forced labour,” as well as a recommendation that Canadian companies undertake “thorough supply-chain due diligence to import [Chinese] goods.”
The old page also identified “design and infrastructure services and health services” as opportunities for Canadian companies; these references have also been deleted.
