US-China conflict: South Korea stuck between rock and hard place

Visitors are seen near the portrait of late Chinese chairman Mao Zedong on Tiananmen Gate, on the day of the closing session of the National People's Congress (NPC), in Beijing, China May 28. Reuters-Yonhap

By Do Je-hae

The government is closely watching the escalating U.S.-China conflict and analyzing the possible impact on Korea, the nation's top diplomat said Thursday.

"We are well aware of domestic concerns about the rising conflict in the international community," Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said during a meeting on foreign affairs strategy coordination held at the ministry's headquarters in central Seoul, according to press pool reports.

"We are conducting a detailed analysis with experts within and outside the government about the conflict's significance and its possible impact on Korea."

Although the foreign minister stopped short of specifically mentioning the United States, and China, the remarks were seen as reflecting the Moon Jae-in administration's increasing concerns about Korea's diplomacy being sandwiched between the two superpowers' escalating competition.

The meeting at the foreign ministry came as the Chinese "parliament" endorsed the controversial national security legislation pertaining to Hong Kong, further raising tension with the U.S., which has been highly critical of the move.

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President Moon Jae-in faces the complex task of balancing Korea's diplomacy between the U.S. and China amid an escalating rivalry between the two superpowers over trade, Hong Kong and competition for global leadership in the post-COVID-19-era. Yonhap

Concerns are rising among experts and the general public about how Korea will deal with the conflict. Korea is expected to face more pressure from both countries to show support for their respective strategies to strengthen their respective influence in the region.

Experts are underlining the need for Korea to take a careful, long-term approach to the issue as the anti-Chinese policy in Washington is likely to be maintained regardless of who takes over the White House in the upcoming presidential election.

"The U.S. and China are almost certainly headed toward a new Cold War. The anti-Chinese sentiment in the U.S. will likely persist even if Joe Biden wins the U.S. presidential race," Yoon Kwan-young, a former foreign minister, said during a forum in Seoul this week. "There will be increasing pressure from both sides on Korea. We need a principled approach based on transparency and rationality."

Some insiders say that maintaining good relations with North Korea is one of the ways to defuse tension between the U.S. and China in the region.

"South Korea is an American ally, but it also maintains a strategic partnership with China. Both countries are valuable countries to our national interests," said Moon Chung-in, the special adviser to President Moon Jae-in on foreign affairs and national security, in a recent Korea Times interview.

U.S. President Donald Trump has blamed China for the COVID-19, which he has called a worse attack than Pearl Harbor, and has threatened to cut ties with the country. Yonhap

"To get out of this dilemma, South Korea needs to take a more prudent balanced diplomacy. In so doing, Seoul needs to get a major breakthrough in inter-Korean relations. Improved inter-Korean relations will serve as a very valuable buffer to the U.S.-China strategic rivalry on the Korean Peninsula."

Officials from Cheong Wa Dae and various ministries took part in the meeting at the foreign ministry.

The presidential office has not been openly discussing the issue. But recently, deputy national security adviser Kim Hyun-chong underlined the government's concerns about the U.S.-China conflict, among other diplomatic challenges, during a lecture for first-time lawmakers-elect of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea.

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