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A good time to boost relations with China

Published: 04 Aug. 2024, 20:08

The brotherly relationship between North Korea and China has been showing signs of cracks. The rift in their “blood ties” widened as Pyongyang weaned off its reliance on Beijing to move closer to Moscow by signing a mutual defense treaty — which calls for the two states to provide immediate military assistance to each other in the event of war — during their summit in Pyongyang last June. A shake-up in the North-China-Russia axis in response to the stronger security cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan can provide greater maneuvering room for Seoul.

The North-China relations started to show signs of souring from late last year. The confrontation between America and China eased since last November through a summit in San Francisco. But North Korea was displeased with China’s inconsistent stance on their anti-U.S. front as China tried to maintain its distance with the North and Russia — both called “rogue states” — to uphold its international standing.

Beijing dispatched Zhao Leji — the third-ranking member of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress — to Pyongyang in April to attend the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic relationship, though China sent Premier Li Qiang, the CPC’s second-highest-rank, to Seoul for a trilateral meeting among South Korea, Japan and China in May. After the three leaders signed a joint declaration on committing to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, North Korea blasted off a rocket to put a military spy satellite into orbit. Implying Beijing’s displeasure, China removed a “footprint bronze plaque” commemorating a friendship stroll between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the former’s visit to Dalian in 2018.

China has denied North Korea’s request for visa extensions for workers, who are an important source of foreign currency earnings for Pyongyang, and ordered them to return home. North Korea is reportedly migrating them to Russia.

After elevating the North’s relations with Russia to their bilateral Cold War level through the June summit, Kim Jong-un sent out a directive telling his envoys in Beijing “not to mind China” last month. China under Xi’s presidency kept its distance with North Korea to better its relationship with South Korea except for the time it raged over Seoul’s installation of the Thaad missiles.

It is premature to declare fissures in the traditional ties between Pyongyang and Beijing. But Seoul must use the momentum of a cooling phase to mend its relations with Beijing. A new Chinese ambassador will soon be reporting to duty in Seoul. The government must use the 32nd anniversary of diplomatic normalization on Aug. 24 to strengthen its relations with China.