U.S. and China leaders to visit South Korea simultaneously for first time in 13 years… 'Gyeongju APEC' takes on greater significance

TikTok agreement played a major role in making the talks happen

Key issues such as tariffs and export controls remain areas of disagreement

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit South Korea simultaneously for the first time in 13 years on the occasion of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Gyeongju at the end of October. With the leaders of the two world powers gathering in one place, the Gyeongju APEC has drawn the world's attention.

On the 19th (local time), President Trump wrote on Truth Social, "I just had a very productive call with Chinese President Xi Jinping," and announced, "we agreed to meet at the APEC summit in Korea."

The South Korean government is this year's APEC chair. President Lee Jae-myung sent invitations to the heads of all 20 member countries, but both President Trump and President Xi had not expressed intent to attend until recently.

The meeting between the two leaders would be the first U.S.-China summit meeting since President Trump returned to office in January this year, and about six years since they met in Osaka, Japan during the June 2019 G20 summit.

Analysts say the meeting was made possible largely because the two countries found common ground on the sale of TikTok's U.S. operations, a longstanding contentious issue.

President Trump told reporters at the White House that he had nearly a two-hour call with President Xi and that "it was a very good conversation." China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that President Xi also described the call with President Trump as "positive and constructive." However, some pointed out that gaps between the two countries remain large on core issues such as tariffs and export controls.

It is unclear whether the two leaders will hold a formal summit or a brief meeting on the sidelines of APEC. There remains the possibility that a meeting exclusively for the two leaders will not materialize. Some speculate this meeting could serve as a stepping stone for the next formal summit. President Trump wrote on Truth Social, "I agreed to visit China early next year and President Xi likewise will come to the United States at an appropriate time."

New York=Correspondent Shin-young Park nyusos@hankyung.com