China, ROK agree to jointly maintain stability of production, supply chain

QINGDAO, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday met with Park Jin, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea (ROK), in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, and the two sides agreed to jointly maintain the stability of production and supply chain.

At present, globalization is facing headwinds and some countries are politicizing the economy, instrumentalizing trade and weaponizing standards, undermining the stability of global production and supply chains, Wang stressed.

He noted that as beneficiaries and builders of the global free trade regime, China and the ROK should resist this kind of behavior that violates market rules and jointly safeguard the security and stability of production and supply chains of the two countries and the world at large.

During the talks, the two sides agreed to accelerate the second-phase negotiation of the China-ROK free trade agreement to strive to reach consensus as soon as possible.

China and the ROK agreed to hold dialogue on maintaining the stability of production and supply chain, and to make the chain complete, safe, unblocked, open and inclusive. Meanwhile, the two sides also agreed to stick to trade and investment liberalization, abide by WTO rules, and adhere to the principles of non-discrimination, non-exclusion, openness and transparency.