New chiefs of Seoul, Beijing meet today

President Roh Moo-hyun is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao today in Beijing. The two leaders will discuss measures to achieve a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula as well as trade issues. Mr. Roh is scheduled to depart for China this morning on a four-day state visit at the invitation of Mr. Hu.
Mr. Roh is the first foreign leader to visit China since the Hu administration overcame the recent SARS outbreak. It is also the first meeting between the leaders of the new South Korean and Chinese administrations. Mr. Roh is expected to study the new Chinese administration’s approach toward North Korea, diplomatic watchers here said.
Mr. Roh will ask Mr. Hu to continue his government’s active and constructive role in the negotiations to arrange a multilateral dialogue with North Korea, Ban Ki-moon, Mr. Roh’s senior adviser for foreign affairs, said yesterday.
A joint press conference will follow the meeting of the two leaders. The two governments are currently fine-tuning sticky diplomatic issues on the statement, Seoul sources said. The issues reportedly include the much-debated visit of the Buddhist leader, the Dalai Lama of Tibet, to South Korea, as well as Seoul’s future relations with Taiwan.

by Choi Hoon