Economics
China Reaps Reward of Softer Diplomatic Approach With Moon’s Visit
- South Korea among several recent foreign policy thaws under Xi
- Beijing capitalizing on uncertainty over U.S. role in region
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As Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomes South Korea’s Moon Jae-in to Beijing, he’ll be showing off the gains of a foreign policy shift that has seen China tamp down several disputes with its neighbors.
Moon left Seoul for first trip to China as president Wednesday, six weeks after China lifted an economic embargo against South Korea over its deployment of a U.S. missile-defense system. The standoff, which hurt sales of everything from cosmetics to K-pop between two of Asia’s biggest economies, ended with Moon promising to respect China’s missile-shield concerns and pursue a “balanced diplomacy” with Beijing and Washington.