Wang Yi’s Seoul visit comes amid potential opening for Korean peace talks 

SEOUL – China’s top diplomat Wang Yi’s first visit to Seoul in five years comes at a moment when the diplomatic geometry of the Korean peninsula looks poised for a shift. 

US President Donald Trump is seeking to revive his personal diplomacy with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, saying he plans to meet Kim later in 2026 and order a reduction in US-South Korea joint military exercises, a move that could help create space for renewed engagement with Pyongyang.

Meanwhile, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has proposed multilateral talks with “directly involved parties” to formally end the Korean War and establish a peace regime on the peninsula.

While Lee did not explicitly name the “directly involved” parties, it is widely understood that he was referring to at least South Korea and its key ally, the United States, North Korea and its key diplomatic and economic partner, China.

Against this backdrop, analysts say the diplomatic space appears to be opening for renewed engagement with North Korea, making Wang’s visit to Seoul particularly timely as China’s support is seen as critical to any resumption of the peace process.

Prior to Wang’s two-day visit, which began on Aug 18, South Korea’s foreign ministry had indicated that Lee’s push for the peace initiative would likely be a high priority on the agenda for the meeting. 

Wang met his Korean counterpart, Cho Hyun, on the first day, before meeting Lee and South Korean National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac the following day. 

Cho, in his opening remarks when he met Wang, called for China to play its role in encouraging Pyongyang to return to dialogue.

A statement released by the Blue House on Aug 20 following Lee’s meeting with Wang stated that Lee had also requested Wang “maintain close strategic communication” with both Cho and Wi on issues regarding bilateral relations and the Korean peninsula. 

Observers say that while it is still premature, a formal peace arrangement on the Korean peninsula could serve China’s interests by reducing the tensions on its doorstep. 

Korea Research Institute for National Strategy defence analyst Doo Jin-ho told The Straits Times that easing military tensions on the Korean peninsula works to Beijing’s advantage.

“It would not only improve border stability and the regional economic environment, but also give China an opportunity to exercise influence as a key party to a peace regime,” said Doo.

Lee Dong-gyu, a research fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul, said a peace treaty aimed at ultimately denuclearising the Korean peninsula could reduce the need for US strategic assets to remain in South Korea, potentially weakening Washington’s military presence and influence in the region.

This poses an outcome that Beijing would likely view as serving its national interests, he told ST. 

The two Koreas remain technically at war, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

The armistice was signed by the United Nations Command, the Korean People’s Army of North Korea, and the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army.

Over the decades since, there have been several attempts to end the armistice and establish a permanent peace regime, but each has ultimately faltered.

The most recent attempt which also came closest to success was the Panmunjom declaration of 2018, when then South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Kim pledged to work towards formally declaring an end to the Korean War and establishing a permanent peace regime. 

The declaration came amid a flurry of diplomacy that culminated in the first Trump-Kim summit in Singapore, which in turn, focused on the denuclearisation of North Korea.

But the collapse of the second Trump-Kim summit in Hanoi in 2019 brought the broader peace process to a standstill, with inter-Korean ties subsequently deteriorating.

By 2024, Kim had gone further, declaring South Korea the North’s “principal enemy” and revising the North Korean Constitution to define South Korea as a “hostile state”. 

According to a statement by China’s foreign ministry, Wang had told National Security Adviser Wi that the “fundamental way” to resolve tensions on the Korean peninsula was to “eliminate the root causes of the problem”, while urging the US to abandon what Beijing described as its “hostile policy” towards North Korea, likely referring to the military and diplomatic pressure on Pyongyang. 

Wang also called on all parties to do more to restart dialogue and rebuild mutual trust. He said China welcomed the prospect of the two Koreas gradually moving towards peaceful coexistence, ultimately establishing a peace mechanism and achieving lasting stability on the peninsula. 

Since Trump and Kim last met in 2019, Pyongyang has forged much closer ties with Moscow, signing a mutual defence treaty with Russia in June 2024 and sending thousands of troops to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

While many doubt that an emboldened Pyongyang would agree to return to the negotiating table, Andrew Yeo, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Brookings Institution, believes that Washington, ironically, still has leverage over North Korea.

“Washington still holds things that Pyongyang values, including political normalisation, reduction of the US military threat, changes to joint US-South Korea forces posture, and ultimately a different relationship with the US that could more likely happen under Trump than any future US leader,” Yeo said.

Analyst Doo said that Kim may “seek to link discussions on a peace treaty to guarantees of regime security, the easing of sanctions against North Korea, and the de facto recognition of its status as a nuclear-armed state”.

In August 2025, acknowledging that denuclearisation of North Korea is not a short-term prospect, President Lee had instead called for a “pragmatic and phased” approach that prioritises drawing Pyongyang back to the negotiating table, beginning with a freeze on its nuclear and missile development, followed by reductions and ultimately complete denuclearisation.

Beyond persuading Pyongyang to participate in peace talks, there is a broader risk that Trump’s personalised diplomacy could once again take centre stage, with direct engagement between Washington and Pyongyang potentially leaving both Seoul and Beijing on the sidelines, despite Seoul’s repeated offer to play “pacemaker” to Trump’s peacemaking efforts.

Research fellow Lee said managing this risk would be critical for Seoul.

“Seoul must, therefore, emphasise to both Washington and Beijing that four-party talks are beneficial for regional and peninsular security because such a framework helps to manage the consequences of any direct US-North Korea deal,” Lee said.