China's Xi Jinping will make his first presidential visit to South Korea next week to discuss regional security and cooperation, a move which many believe, underscores Beijing's growing frustration with the North.

The meeting will focus on finding ways to "cooperate on issues related to the situation on the Korean peninsula, including the North Korean nuclear issue," South Korea's Blue House said in a statement.

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During a daily news briefing on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said there are many areas of interest shared between the two countries.

Mutually-beneficial economic programs is believed to be part of the agenda of Xi's July 3-4 trip. The two countries have already forged one of the world's biggest trade partnerships amounting to over US$230 billion, despite only having established diplomatic ties in 1992, according to Reuters.

A South Korean newspaper Dong-A Ilbo cited Yosei University Chinese expert John Delury when he said the visit highlights growing tensions between Beijing and Pyongyang.

"It is significant, definitely, that Xi Jinping and Park have a very public, close relationship. And the contrast with the fact that he hasn't even had his picture taken with Kim Jong Un is starkly significant."

Beijing is considered Pyongyang's greatest ally since the Korean War, however there have been no confirmed summits between the two since the death of the latter's previous leader, Kim Jong Il in 2011, the AFP learned.

Seoul has been seeking China's assistance to urge the North to stop its nuclear weapons program.

Beijing is vital in dealing with North Korea's nuclear program, South Korean President Park Geun Hye said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal in May.

Shortly after Pyongyang's nuclear test in February 2013, Xi had warned against causing "chaos for selfish gains," a statement which was widely seen as a slap to the North.

China, however, has been reluctant to take drastic steps against the North.

TagsPark Geun Hye, Korean peninsula, presidential summit