By Kang Seung-woo
China is maintaining its strategic ambiguity about international calls to punish North Korea for its latest nuclear test, while reacting sensitively to possible missile defense talks between South Korea and the United States.
The Chinese stance is regarded as somewhat hypocritical here because it is attempting to shift the blame to Seoul for rising tensions, while taking little action to curb the North's nuclear ambitions — the root cause of regional security concerns.
Analysts said Monday that this "two-faced" approach by China will prompt Seoul to further boost its security alliance with Washington, setting the stage for a fiercer military rivalry between the U.S. and China in Northeast Asia.
While Pyongyang has been modernizing its nuclear program, sparked by the Jan. 6 nuclear test, the South and the United States are closer to deploying the terminal high-altitude area defense (THAAD) system on the Korean Peninsula to better protect against nuclear warhead-loaded missiles.
However, the Chinese government has stood against the plan, remaining silent on the North Korean nuclear program.
"It is necessary to take issue with China that is strongly opposing THAAD, but doing little to resolve North Korea's nuclear weapons, a reason for the move toward the THAAD deployment," said Chang Yong-seok, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University.
The Chinese government has urged Seoul to avoid allowing THAAD on the peninsula because it believes the missile defense system could threaten its security.
After the North's fourth nuclear test, the international community has sought to slap the Kim Jong-un regime with stricter sanctions, but China has been procrastinating over the process of pursuing punitive action. China has reportedly proposed to delay a decision on sanctions until after its Lunar New Year holidays from Feb. 7 to 13 in an apparent bid to soften the punishment.
As a result, President Park Geun-hye said in the Jan. 13 press conference that the government will review deploying THAAD here to press China to aggressively do its part as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
"It is an effective measure to enhance publicity on the issue and to seek to deploy it," Chang said.
"China, a dominating force in the region, is required to settle the cause of THAAD, or the North Korean nuclear program, and in this respect, it should send a clear message against it to the North Korea leader."
Park Hwee-rhak, dean of the Graduate School of Politics and Leadership at Kookmin University, said that China fears that the THAAD deployment could toughen the trilateral alliance between South Korea, Japan and the U.S.
"China's opposition is aimed at preventing the U.S. from forging a three-way coalition that will target Beijing behind its Pivot to Asia policy," Park said.
Critics say that a lack of the Park government's strategy toward the North has led to this situation, as well.
"Despite growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the South Korean government has not set clear strategies to deal with the North. Compared with Japan, we are far behind," Park said.
Chang echoed Park's view, saying that under the U.S. strategic frame, we have failed to have its own vision and leverage over the North.
China is maintaining its strategic ambiguity about international calls to punish North Korea for its latest nuclear test, while reacting sensitively to possible missile defense talks between South Korea and the United States.
The Chinese stance is regarded as somewhat hypocritical here because it is attempting to shift the blame to Seoul for rising tensions, while taking little action to curb the North's nuclear ambitions — the root cause of regional security concerns.
Analysts said Monday that this "two-faced" approach by China will prompt Seoul to further boost its security alliance with Washington, setting the stage for a fiercer military rivalry between the U.S. and China in Northeast Asia.
While Pyongyang has been modernizing its nuclear program, sparked by the Jan. 6 nuclear test, the South and the United States are closer to deploying the terminal high-altitude area defense (THAAD) system on the Korean Peninsula to better protect against nuclear warhead-loaded missiles.
However, the Chinese government has stood against the plan, remaining silent on the North Korean nuclear program.
"It is necessary to take issue with China that is strongly opposing THAAD, but doing little to resolve North Korea's nuclear weapons, a reason for the move toward the THAAD deployment," said Chang Yong-seok, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University.
The Chinese government has urged Seoul to avoid allowing THAAD on the peninsula because it believes the missile defense system could threaten its security.
After the North's fourth nuclear test, the international community has sought to slap the Kim Jong-un regime with stricter sanctions, but China has been procrastinating over the process of pursuing punitive action. China has reportedly proposed to delay a decision on sanctions until after its Lunar New Year holidays from Feb. 7 to 13 in an apparent bid to soften the punishment.
As a result, President Park Geun-hye said in the Jan. 13 press conference that the government will review deploying THAAD here to press China to aggressively do its part as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
"It is an effective measure to enhance publicity on the issue and to seek to deploy it," Chang said.
"China, a dominating force in the region, is required to settle the cause of THAAD, or the North Korean nuclear program, and in this respect, it should send a clear message against it to the North Korea leader."
Park Hwee-rhak, dean of the Graduate School of Politics and Leadership at Kookmin University, said that China fears that the THAAD deployment could toughen the trilateral alliance between South Korea, Japan and the U.S.
"China's opposition is aimed at preventing the U.S. from forging a three-way coalition that will target Beijing behind its Pivot to Asia policy," Park said.
Critics say that a lack of the Park government's strategy toward the North has led to this situation, as well.
"Despite growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the South Korean government has not set clear strategies to deal with the North. Compared with Japan, we are far behind," Park said.
Chang echoed Park's view, saying that under the U.S. strategic frame, we have failed to have its own vision and leverage over the North.
![[INTERVIEW] 'The Flag': Kwon Jin-ah's love letter to people chasing their dreams](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/286500d853334c96ab51e56d74fe38f2.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
