Blinken Supports Efforts toward 'Mature' China-South Korea Ties: South Korea Ministry
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he supports South Korea's efforts to develop a "healthy and mature" cooperative relationship with China, South Korea's foreign ministry said on Saturday.
Blinken, who arrives in Beijing on Sunday for the highest-level visit by an official of President Joe Biden's administration, discussed bilateral relations, relations between China and South Korea, and North Korea in a call with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin on Saturday, the ministry said in a statement, Reuters reported.
Blinken and Park strongly condemned what they consider North Korea's repeated provocations, the ministry said, and agreed the US, South Korea and Japan should continue to urge China to play a constructive role in the UN Security Council on denuclearization. The statement did not elaborate.
US officials say they do not expect Blinken's trip to China, the first by a secretary of state in five years, to yield a breakthrough in how Washington and Beijing deal with each other.
Blinken said on Friday the trip was aimed at establishing "open and empowered" communications.
