Neighbors should better coordinate at strategic level

President Xi Jinping meets South Korea's President Park Geun-hye at a welcoming ceremony during the APEC Summit at the International Convention Center in Beijing on Nov 11, 2014. [Photo/Agencies]

Bilateral ties between China and the Republic of Korea are in good shape, yet they both need to attach strategic significance to their cooperation.

During his meeting with his ROK counterpart Park Geun-hye on the sidelines of the fourth Nuclear Security Summit in Washington on March 31, President Xi Jinping said China attaches great importance to the relationship with the ROK and always makes it a priority in China's neighborhood diplomacy.

Xi said China and the ROK should maintain the momentum of high-level interactions, make use of the existing mechanisms of strategic communication, accommodate each other's major concerns, and respect each other's sovereignty, security and development interests.

In recent years, the frequent high-level interactions between the two countries have laid a solid foundation for deepening mutual understanding and strategic mutual trust. During his state visit to the ROK in July 2014, Xi proposed the two sides become partners that share common development, promote regional peace and Asia's revitalization, and boost world prosperity. The trajectory of Sino-ROK ties since then has been realizing these expectations.

On December 20, the China-ROK Free Trade Agreement formally took effect, paving the way for bilateral cooperation and exchanges in a much wider range of fields. The FTA, the largest bilateral free trade deal for China in terms of trade volume, covers 17 areas, including investment, trade in goods and services, and trade rules.

So far, the two sides have already cut tariffs twice, bringing greater benefits for businesses and consumers in both countries. In April, officials from both sides decided to maximize the effect of the FTA and push for a series of joint economic projects as agreed by the two leaders.