China’s top legislator to meet S. Korea leaders for talks

ABC News:

SEOUL, South Korea — China’s top legislator was set to meet new South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul on Friday, as Yoon’s push to buttress a military alliance with Washington has caused concerns that it could hamper Seoul’s ties with Beijing.

Li Zhanshu, third in the Chinese Communist Party hierarchy and one of President Xi Jinping’s closest confidants, is the highest-level Chinese official to visit South Korea since his predecessor came here in 2015. Li’s trip is seen as part of Beijing’s efforts to boost ties with neighboring countries ahead of a Communist Party congress next month that will likely grant Xi a third five-year term as leader.

Li’s visit is also crucial for Yoon’s government as it wants to assure Beijing that its push to reinforce the U.S. alliance and participations in U.S.-led regional initiatives won’t target China, its biggest trading partner.

Li, chairman of the standing committee of China’s National People’s Congress, heads a 66-member Chinese delegation to South Korea that includes three Cabinet-level officials. On Friday afternoon, he is to meet Yoon after separate talks with National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin Pyo and other South Korean parliamentary leaders on cooperation between the two countries’ legislatures.

Li’s closeness to Xi suggests his comments reflect the thinking of Xi and his inner circle.