S. Korea, China discuss APEC cooperation, steel structures in West Sea

South Korea and China have discussed cooperation on the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit here and other pending bilateral issues, likely including Beijing's steel structures in the overlapping maritime zone in the West Sea, Seoul officials said Wednesday. The working-level dialogue took place Tuesday, led by Kang Young-shin, director general for Northeast and Central Asian affairs at the South Korean foreign ministry, and Liu Jinsong, director general for Asian affairs at China's foreign ministry. During the talks, the two sides agreed to continue communication at various levels and build on a shared understanding to further develop bilateral relations in light of the APEC summit. China is also due to host next year's APEC gathering. In this vein, they likely discussed the possibility of Chinese President Xi Jinping visiting South Korea for the APEC event, scheduled to be held in the southern city of Gyeongju between late October and early November. The two officials also exchanged views on "concrete ways to expand cooperation in economic initiatives that can brinWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times