Seoul: China's top envoy to South Korea announced that the issue regarding the removal of disputed steel structures in the Yellow Sea is advancing positively. Chinese Ambassador Dai Bing made this statement during an event at the Chinese Embassy in Seoul, which was held to celebrate the upcoming Lunar New Year. This announcement follows a recent declaration from China's foreign ministry that efforts are underway to dismantle one of the three steel structures in the contested sea zone, where the exclusive economic zones of China and South Korea overlap.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Ambassador Dai highlighted that progress is being made following two rounds of summits between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping. These discussions, including the most recent one in Beijing, have focused on resolving the maritime issue. Dai emphasized the importance of increasing working-level exchanges to implement the agreements made by the two leaders.

China constructed two semisubmersible buoys in 2018 and 2024, along with a fixed steel platform in 2022, within the Provisional Maritime Zone. These installations have been a point of contention in China-South Korea relations, with South Korea viewing them as potential indicators of China's future territorial claims.

Regarding the so-called "hallyu ban" or the alleged ban on Korean culture in China, Ambassador Dai dismissed the term as inaccurate and inappropriate. He reaffirmed the Chinese government's official stance that no such restrictions have been imposed and expressed a desire to foster beneficial and constructive cultural exchanges between the two nations.