Park needs new diplomatic strategy, and new chief, too
Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is a well-known workaholic calling in department chiefs at 11 p.m. Yun also keeps on his toes, answering calls from Cheong Wa Dae before the bell rings three times ― even at 2 a.m. Such diligence and alertness ― or loyalty ― explains in part why President Park Geun-hye stands by her diplomatic chief despite mounting calls for his ouster from both the ruling and opposition parties.
The problem is that the current diplomatic situation facing this country requires a creative strategist and shrewd tactician more than an order-following, hard-working bureaucrat.
Minister Yun may well feel that most of the criticisms directed at him is quite unfair. Until late last year, diplomacy had been one of President Park's strong points. The nation's first female president stuck to principles in dealing with problematic neighbors, namely Japan and North Korea, while maintaining a good balance between the United States and China.
In just six months, the cheers have turned into jeers: The principled stance has become rigidity that cannot cope with the fast-changing external environment. And balanced diplomacy was reduced to undue watching of giant partners' faces while lacking a firm backbone in foreign policy.
Yun may think critics are capricious. Yet even more fickle are changing positions of countries based on their national interests.
Nothing showed better Seoul's poor diplomatic senses than its pushing ahead with President Park's South American tour last month even as her most important regional counterparts headed to Indonesia for the Asia-African summit. Foreign ministry officials said the tour had been long planned, but most Koreans found it hard to understand this government's priority in diplomacy. Minister Yun's rebuttals to critics ― which moved beyond self-defense toward self-praise ― only added fuel to the fire.
President Park may be right to pat the back of her foreign policy czar because ''there are limitations to what we can do to block Japan's historical regression." However, one cannot not help but ask whether Park's national security-diplomatic team was aware of apparent changes in atmosphere in both Washington and Beijing toward overlooking Tokyo's lack of a formal apology for past wrongdoing. If they didn't know this, it reveals sheer incompetence. If they did know but did nothing about it, it was a glaring dereliction of duty.
Pressed into a corner by lawmakers about the relative waning of Korea-U.S. alliance compared with the U.S.-Japan military partnership, Yun stunned them, by saying Korea's alliance with America was stronger than Japan's because the former has a unified command system while the latter has separate systems. What can Koreans expect from a foreign minister who identifies an alliance with military subordination?
The diplomatic match between Korea and Japan in the past half a year has ended up as a one-sided defeat for Seoul. Of course Seoul lags far behind Tokyo in economic and other areas, but that should not necessarily mean Korean diplomats have to remain content with just belated announcements denouncing Japan. Are they still mired in naïve expectations that the U.S. or Chinese governments will side with Korea in pursuit of historical justice?
President Park needs to be a far more flexible ― and cunning ― thinker and actor diplomatically. If Park can't change herself, she needs such a person in her diplomatic team. The incumbent foreign minister does not look like one. And the nation can hardly afford to until August 15 ― not even until June when Park visits Washington.
Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is a well-known workaholic calling in department chiefs at 11 p.m. Yun also keeps on his toes, answering calls from Cheong Wa Dae before the bell rings three times ― even at 2 a.m. Such diligence and alertness ― or loyalty ― explains in part why President Park Geun-hye stands by her diplomatic chief despite mounting calls for his ouster from both the ruling and opposition parties.
The problem is that the current diplomatic situation facing this country requires a creative strategist and shrewd tactician more than an order-following, hard-working bureaucrat.
Minister Yun may well feel that most of the criticisms directed at him is quite unfair. Until late last year, diplomacy had been one of President Park's strong points. The nation's first female president stuck to principles in dealing with problematic neighbors, namely Japan and North Korea, while maintaining a good balance between the United States and China.
In just six months, the cheers have turned into jeers: The principled stance has become rigidity that cannot cope with the fast-changing external environment. And balanced diplomacy was reduced to undue watching of giant partners' faces while lacking a firm backbone in foreign policy.
Yun may think critics are capricious. Yet even more fickle are changing positions of countries based on their national interests.
Nothing showed better Seoul's poor diplomatic senses than its pushing ahead with President Park's South American tour last month even as her most important regional counterparts headed to Indonesia for the Asia-African summit. Foreign ministry officials said the tour had been long planned, but most Koreans found it hard to understand this government's priority in diplomacy. Minister Yun's rebuttals to critics ― which moved beyond self-defense toward self-praise ― only added fuel to the fire.
President Park may be right to pat the back of her foreign policy czar because ''there are limitations to what we can do to block Japan's historical regression." However, one cannot not help but ask whether Park's national security-diplomatic team was aware of apparent changes in atmosphere in both Washington and Beijing toward overlooking Tokyo's lack of a formal apology for past wrongdoing. If they didn't know this, it reveals sheer incompetence. If they did know but did nothing about it, it was a glaring dereliction of duty.
Pressed into a corner by lawmakers about the relative waning of Korea-U.S. alliance compared with the U.S.-Japan military partnership, Yun stunned them, by saying Korea's alliance with America was stronger than Japan's because the former has a unified command system while the latter has separate systems. What can Koreans expect from a foreign minister who identifies an alliance with military subordination?
The diplomatic match between Korea and Japan in the past half a year has ended up as a one-sided defeat for Seoul. Of course Seoul lags far behind Tokyo in economic and other areas, but that should not necessarily mean Korean diplomats have to remain content with just belated announcements denouncing Japan. Are they still mired in naïve expectations that the U.S. or Chinese governments will side with Korea in pursuit of historical justice?
President Park needs to be a far more flexible ― and cunning ― thinker and actor diplomatically. If Park can't change herself, she needs such a person in her diplomatic team. The incumbent foreign minister does not look like one. And the nation can hardly afford to until August 15 ― not even until June when Park visits Washington.
