China's Wang Yi to Visit South Korea for Talks With Top Diplomat

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit South Korea for two days starting Wednesday, meeting his South Korean counterpart, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, to discuss North Korea, bilateral ties, and global issues, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. The trip marks renewed high-level exchanges between the two countries after years of friction over South Korea's deployment of a U.S. missile defense system that Beijing opposed. The visit comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered the Pentagon to "substantially reduce" joint military exercises with South Korea, citing their cost and his "very good relationship" with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The announcement appeared to catch Seoul by surprise, raising doubts about Washington's reliability in the region and prompting China to step up engagement with its neighbor.