Joint work by Seoul, Beijing key to peace on peninsula

Things became so ugly between Beijing and Seoul during the last days of the Park Geun-hye presidency that every sign of warmth evaporated. All because of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system the United States and Republic of Korea militaries rushed into the country amid the political vacuum prior to the general election following Park's impeachment.

Now that the new administration in Seoul has displayed a change of approach to bilateral ties, as well as an awareness of the damaging potential of THAAD, a thaw may be around the corner.

On the heels of a fence-mending trip to Beijing by a ROK presidential envoy, it has been reported that Chinese travel agencies may soon restart ROK-bound group tours.