U.S. should not deal with peninsula issue based on own thinking: expert    

North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho will visit China from Thursday to Sunday to enhance China-North Korea communication on the Korean Peninsula issue, China's Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the announcement at a press conference on Tuesday.

Ri will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The two sides will exchange views on China-North Korea ties and the Korean Peninsula situation, Geng said.

Ri's visit will help the two countries implement the two leaders' consensus and promote bilateral ties, Geng added.

The announcement came after a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump at the G20 summit where the two sides agreed to keep close communication on the Korean Peninsula issue.

Zheng Jiyong, director of the Center for Korean Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai, told the Global Times on Tuesday that Ri's visit is aimed at confirming with China if any consensus had been reached with the US on the Korean Peninsula issue.

China has played an important role in stabilizing the situation on the peninsula and will continue to help create a balance between the different stakeholders and prevent the US from dealing with the issue based on its own thinking, Zheng said.

Trump was focused on his future political path after Republicans lost the House to the Democrats after the midterm elections. But after meeting Xi, he is clearer on the Korean Peninsula issue, Zheng explained.

Trump said a second meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will likely take place in January or February 2019, CNN reported Monday.

Andrew Kim, the head of the CIA's Korea Mission Center, met with North Korean officials in Panmunjom, likely over the date and location of the next meeting between Trump and Kim as well as other issues, including the demolition of the Yongbyon nuclear facilities, Yonhap News Agency reported. 

The key to resolving the Korean Peninsula issue is if the US relaxes its control over the peninsula and adjusts its Indo-Pacific strategy, Zheng said.

The two Koreas completely pulled out their weapons and guard posts from the Joint Security Area inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), the Xinhua News Agency reported.

North Korea blew up 10 of its guard posts in the DMZ, leaving one as a tourist attraction.

By Leng Shumei 

(Source: Global Times  http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1130341.shtml)