SKorean president heads to China, hoping to sidestep Taiwan tensions

SEOUL — South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung heads to China on Sunday, eager to boost economic ties with Seoul’s largest trading partner while keeping a lid on potentially explosive issues such as Taiwan. Lee is the first South Korean leader to visit Beijing in six years and his four-day trip comes less than a week after China carried out massive military drills around Taiwan, the self-ruled island it claims as part of its territory. The exercise, featuring missiles, fighter jets, navy ships and coastguard vessels, drew a chorus of international condemnation that Seoul has notably declined to join. Lee,…