China’s inclusion in declaring the end of the Korean War remains a possibility, a high-level Cheong Wa Dae official revealed Tuesday.

While Seoul and Pyongyang agreed to seek an official end to the Korean War in the Panmunjom Declaration, there has been some contention over whether such a declaration should involve just the two Koreas and the US, or include China. 

“It remains to be seen whether the declaration of an end to the war will be trilateral or quadrilateral, but a four-way declaration has not been ruled out. (A four-way declaration) remains possible depending on the discussions,” the Cheong Wa Dae official said. 

The official also denied reports that Cheong Wa Dae had drawn up a draft of a declaration before the June 12 US-North Korea summit, and declined to comment on whether Pyongyang prefers to have China involved in the matter.

The official stressed that the priority is whether the concerned parties can reach an agreement, adding that Pyongyang and Washington are likely to have discussed the matter before the June 12 summit.

The comments from the presidential office follow revelations that National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong had met with China’s Yang Jiechi in Seoul earlier this month.

Yang, the director of China’s Central Foreign Affairs Commission, met Chung in Seoul on July 11, but the two governments chose to keep the meeting undisclosed to allow the talks to be conducted “more smoothly,” according to Cheong Wa Dae.

In confirming Yang’s visit, Seoul’s presidential office said that outstanding bilateral issues were discussed, but that the meeting was not for “reaching an agreement.”

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)