South Korean President to Visit China

[beijingwalker]

South Korean President to Visit China
DECEMBER 22, 2011, 4:00 A.M. ET.
By SE YOUNG LEE

SEOUL—South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will make a state visit to China early next year, his office said Thursday, part of a stepped-up effort to coordinate more closely with Beijing over North Korea following the death of Kim Jong Il.

The planned trip, along with a visit to China by South Korea's nuclear envoy Thursday, indicates a warming of ties, driven by the need to liaise on policy toward Pyongyang during the potentially volatile transition to new leadership in North Korea.

Relations between China and South Korea came under strain earlier this month after a South Korean Coast Guard officer died after allegedly being stabbed by the captain of a Chinese fishing vessel that entered South Korean territorial waters.

On the issue of North Korea, public opinion in South Korea is broadly suspicious of China, particularly because of Beijing's refusal to publicly criticize North Korea for two attacks on South Korea last year that killed 50 people.

However, the sudden death of North Korean dictator Mr. Kim, announced Monday, has raised fears in both Seoul and Beijing of instability in North Korea as Mr. Kim's youthful and untested third son, Kim Jong Eun, is thrust into leadership.

Analysts say that the immediate priority for both South Korea and China is to shelve any differences and work together on North Korea.
"It's important to build high-level communication lines as well as hotlines; there need to be multiple channels," said Lee Tai-hwan, a senior fellow at the Sejong Institute Center for China Studies, located near Seoul.

The foreign ministers of China and South Korea spoke Tuesday, although South Korean President Lee has faced domestic criticism for not yet speaking to Chinese President Hu Jintao.

South Korea's presidential office didn't give a specific date for Mr. Lee's trip to China. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said he didn't have any information to provide about the visit.

Meanwhile, Seoul's nuclear envoy Lim Sung-nam was to arrive in China on Thursday to talk with his Chinese counterpart Wu Dawei about North Korea's nuclear program.

The officials would reaffirm both countries' commitment to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, a South Korean foreign ministry official said.

China's official Xinhua News Agency said they would also discuss coordinating joint strategies to resume the stalled six-party talks process over North Korea's nuclear program. Those talks, which also include the U.S., Japan and Russia, broke down in 2008.

Separately, speaking at a meeting of political party leaders Thursday, South Korea's Mr. Lee said that following the death of Mr. Kim, Seoul was trying to show North Korea that it doesn't regard its northern neighbor with hostility. He added that South Korea was maintaining a low level of military alert at the border with North Korea.

 

[SinoChallenger]

Just days before, they declared they will use deadly force against Chinese fisherman. Now they want us to side with them against North Korea? These banzi have no shame.

 

[Fantasy]

Lee Myung Bak foreign policy can only be characterize by one thing confrontational and failure. His failure with North Korea, and also ultimately souring Korean - Chinese relations, am glad that he will be voted out next year.

 

[TigerOfQin]

South Koreans have no shame in fabricating history of China. I wouldn't expect much from this. Hu should shrug Lee off and ask for tributes.

 

[RedBeard]

Welcome to China.

 

[ChinaToday]

SK wanted china to be their friend and isolate NK

 

[beijingwalker]

S.Korea lives at mercy of the N.Koreans

North Korea Flatten Seoul - North Korea’s Weapons Capabilties

When North and South Korea trade artillery rounds, as they did this past Tuesday, killing four and injuring at least 16, some panicked hyperbole is understandable. First, there's the unfortunate geography—the opponents' capitals are just 120 miles apart, with Seoul within 35 miles of the border. The numbers only get worse, with estimates of as many as 13,000 artillery pieces positioned along that border, many of them within range and presumably aimed directly at Seoul, one of the world's most densely-populated cities. Factor in the rate of fire of all those suspected artillery batteries, and throw in the potential launch of hundreds of missiles, and it's easy to conclude that if North Korea is pushed hard enough, the result could be, as the New York Times put it yesterday, "the destruction of Seoul."

The more common term for the potential fate of the South Korean capital, casually dropped on recent radio and television news reports, as well as in two separate AOL news op-eds from earlier this year, is that it would be "flattened." Analysis from Time magazine in 2003 went so far as to gauge how long this would take: "Its conventional artillery capability would allow North Korea to flatten Seoul in the first half-hour of any confrontation."

North Korea Has 70,000 Cannons Targeted at Seoul
Nov 28, 2010 10:17 GMT; Last Modified: Nov 28, 2010 10:31 GMT

As the US South Korean naval exercise begins, North Korea deployed surface to surface missiles in the Yellow Sea, and also moved other missiles further south. The North Koreans have vowed that any trespassing of their borders, through land, air or sea, will meet a strong response.

And even without these latest movements, North Korea has a massive artillery array of 70,000 cannons pointed to Seoul – South Korea’s capital, which is very close to the border. A full utilization of this artillery could destroy Seoul withing hours.

 

[Nan Yang]

Lee Myung Bak foreign policy can only be characterize by one thing confrontational and failure. His failure with North Korea, and also ultimately souring Korean - Chinese relations, am glad that he will be voted out next year.

China, US, Japan and S Korea all have different strategy on N Korea.

All China wants is stability and peace at its North East border so they can trade and make money.

US however wants Regime Change to a pro-US government and would risk a war to do that.

Japan does not want war but would not mind some tension so that the Koreans confront each other instead of uniting against Japan.

South Koreans on the other hand can't make up their mind. First it's the Sunshine policy. Then it's Sunset then more Sunshine then Sunset again.

 

[Sasquatch]

Actually it's kind of fun watching North Korea agitate Japan, I remember back a while North Korea Sent Spies to capture Japanese Actress

---------- Post added at 10:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:49 AM ----------

S.Korea lives at mercy of the N.Koreans

10-12 million die ? More powerful then Nuclear Bomb, Artillery on the Hills near the DMZ that could turn Seoul into a sea of fire.

 

[Obambam]

SK wanted china to be their friend and isolate NK

Friend "can be", but to isolate another friend? "no can do"

 

[Korean]

Just days before, they declared they will use deadly force against Chinese fisherman.

And the weapons use rule has been revised. Coast guard officers are free to open fire when Chinese fishermen resist arrest violently, no question will be asked under the revised policy.

Now they want us to side with them against North Korea?

President Lee is asking China to not increase trade and aid to NK, to force Kim Jong Eun to surrender.

Lee Myung Bak foreign policy can only be characterize by one thing confrontational and failure.

His NK policy has the majority support according to polls.

His failure with North Korea

Public wants no deal with NK at all and takes a hardline against Kim Jong Il's regime. The only acceptable outcome is the regime collapse.

and also ultimately souring Korean - Chinese relations

Which once again is supported by public.

am glad that he will be voted out next year.

He won't be voted out; the Korean presidency is for one term.

S.Korea lives at mercy of the N.Koreans

Foreigners living in Seoul will tell you, the only people having uncertain outlooks upon the news of Kim Jong Il's death were foreigners themselves. Foreigners were shocked to see how it was a life as usual, nothing changed.

 

[Korean]

Some "information" about North Korean nukes.

North Korean nukes are stored near the Chinese border, not near the DMZ. Furthermore, the warhead is approximately 5 tons and cannot be delivered by a plane or a missile.

Furthermore, the storage location is known to the US intelligence and under a 24-hour surveillance, ready to be seized if abnormalities are observed.

 

[beijingwalker]

the whole Korean peninsula is very small,it's dosent matter where they store their nuclear weapons,S.Korea can be wiped off the face of the earth in a minute if the North is willing,the country is too small to defend itself,the South wont stand a chance to make a second strike.

 

[beijingwalker]

70,000 super Cannons and nuclear arsenal,if unleashed its full might on S.Korea,the country will vaporize into the thin air in no time.

North Korea threatens nuclear 'holy war'
Armed forces minister's comments come after South stages massive drills


Park Ji-ho / AP

POCHEON, South Korea — North Korea's minister of armed forces said Thursday that its military was prepared to wage a "holy war" against the South using its nuclear deterrent after what he called Seoul's attempt to initiate conflict.

"To counter the enemy's intentional drive to push the situation to the brink of war, our revolutionary forces are making preparations to begin a holy war at any moment necessary based on nuclear deterrent," KCNA quoted Kim as telling the rally in Pyongyang.

 

[Obambam]

Some "information" about North Korean nukes.

North Korean nukes are stored near the Chinese border, not near the DMZ. Furthermore, the warhead is approximately 5 tons and cannot be delivered by a plane or a missile.

Like you would know?

Furthermore, the storage location is known to the US intelligence and under a 24-hour surveillance, ready to be seized if abnormalities are observed.

It is "approximately 5 tons" we were told. It would be interesting to see how it may be seized without the North and the Chinese knowing