China and South Korea agreed to expand economic ties and reaffirmed their commitment to a denuclearized Korean peninsula, as Chinese President Xi Jinping began a state visit to Seoul. At a joint news briefing with Xi, South Korean President Park Geun-hye said Seoul and Beijing will work to complete a long-negotiated free trade agreement by the end of this year. Seoul’s finance ministry also said the two sides agreed to introduce direct trading between the South Korean won and the Chinese yuan, a measure that will expand the use of China’s currency. The decision means the yuan joins the dollar as the only currency directly convertible with the won. Park also said she agreed with Xi that the Korean peninsula should be denuclearized and that the two leaders “resolutely” oppose further nuclear tests by North Korea. “Above all, in the current situation, where North Korea once again launched its missile and maintained its stance of carrying out simultaneous development of its nuclear capability and economy, President Xi’s visit to South Korea will be a clear message for North Korea’s denuclearization, and peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula,” Park said.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Jul 2014 19:39:20 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015