[Xinhua / Yonhap Photo]
China has invited an official delegation from South Korea to the Belt and Road Forum in a crucial policy shift that followed months of frozen ties between Asia's two major economies over a US missile shield brought to the Korean peninsula to intercept North Korean ballistic missiles.
A government delegation led by Park Byeong-seug, a ruling Democratic Party lawmaker, will attend the two-day forum which kicks off on Sunday, the president's office said, adding the invitation was extended at a telephone conversation Thursday between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The delegation, which includes two other ruling party lawmakers, Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam and a finance ministry official, would fly to Beijing on Saturday. Yonhap News Agency said Park is expected to hold a series of talks with Chinese officials on the sidelines of the forum.
China's sudden overture raised speculation that the two countries would step up efforts to arrange summit talks as Moon accepted Xi's invitation to Beijing.
The forum is dedicated to Xi's signature foreign policy project, the Belt and Road Initiative, also known as "One Belt, One Road" after its two main components: the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.
China has touted the forum as the major international event of the year, with 29 heads of state or government to be in attendance. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and other high-profile international figures have been invited.
Up until Thursday, China had sidelined South Korea due to a diplomatic deadlock caused by the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system on the Korean peninsula.
Thursday's conversation was seen as an icebreaker in relations between Beijing and Seoul. Moon suggested the two countries should have better and early communication and understanding on thorny issues. The two leaders agreed to exchange a special envoy at an early date.
Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
