INTERVIEW N. Korea gets more isolated by ASEAN
Amb. Lee Sang-deok
By Kim Jae-kyoung
SINGAPORE — North Korea is getting more isolated by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) after a series of recent provocative actions, according to a senior South Korean diplomat.
“ASEAN member states are seeing North Korea’s potential threat in a new light,” South Korean Ambassador to Singapore Lee Sang-deok said in a recent interview. “Although we need to continue to monitor the situation for a while, I believe that the latest developments are deepening North Korea’s isolation in the ASEAN region.”
His view came amid mounting criticism toward North Korea after the reclusive country launched intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and allegedly murdered Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of leader Kim Jong-un.
Pyongyang has been trying to maintain robust ties with ASEAN nations to minimize its diplomatic isolation and economic dependence on China. North Korea currently has embassies in eight ASEAN countries except for Brunei and the Philippines.
Last October, Singapore scrapped its visa-free status for North Koreans in line with fresh sanctions imposed by the U.N. Security Council. In early March, Malaysia also removed visa-free entry amid a spat over Kim’s murder.
“The removal of visa-free status is greatly limiting North Koreans’ entry to Singapore and their activities here,” Lee said.
In order to improve South Korea’s political and administrative system, the career diplomat said that the country needs to take a cue from Singapore in the areas of transparency and efficiency
“The Singaporean government works to enhance its predictability and transparency through consistent policy implementation,” he said.
“This naturally forms a virtuous cycle, which leads citizens to trust the policies that their government establishes,” he added. “Its transparent and efficient culture also confers additional credibility to companies considering bringing their business to Singapore.”
Singapore was used as a reference for Korea’s anti-graft law, better known as the Kim Young-ran Act, introduced last year
Lee also said that South Korea should be more open to become an internationally-competitive economy.
“The primary reason for Singapore’s success is its open attitude to engage with foreign companies. In Singapore, foreigners have the opportunity to work in government and public agencies.”
“Singapore has also created an excellent business environment through its regulatory reform,” he added. “It adapts quickly to new markets and technologies and offers an ideal testing bed for them,” he added.
Diversifying diplomatic partnerships
Lee, the former director general for Northeast Asian affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that South Korea needs to diversify diplomatic partnerships to tackle diverse challenges weighing on the country.
“The current situation on the Korean Peninsula, such as continued provocations from North Korea and tensions over THAAD deployment, is highlighting the importance of expanding diplomatic partnerships to strengthen Korea’s position,” he said.
“To that end, Korea should put a top priority on cooperation with ASEAN,” he added. “To strengthen partnerships, it is critical to ensure more exchange of high-level government officials and to have a diversified agenda.”
In this context, he said that the country should pay special attention to Singapore as the city state is a hub of ASEAN and an entrance to the 10-member bloc.
“Because its society is comprised of multiple ethnic groups, such as Chinese, Malays and Indiana, Singapore could be a gateway to Southeast Asia,” he said. “By focusing on Singapore, exporting the Korean wave can be more efficient and diverse.”
When expanding the Korean wave in the region, he said that there are two areas the country should focus on — promoting more high-class culture and pursuing two-way exchanges.
“An additional avenue for expansion can be exposing people to a different class of Korean culture, such as fine arts, literature and the performing arts,” he said.
“Cultural exchange can be stronger when it is mutual. So it is imperative for Koreans to deepen our awareness and understanding of Singaporean culture as well as other Southeast Asian cultures.”
On economic cooperation, Lee said that Singapore can be the best partner for Korea because the two economies complement each other.
According to him, Singaporean companies have extensive overseas networks and ample capital, yet they have limited land and human resources, while Korean firms have excellent technology and rich experiences but lack global networks and capital power.
“Combining the merits and advantages of Korea and Singapore will produce synergy and greater outcomes through cooperation between small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and industries closely related to the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” he said.
“This year, we will particularly focus on cooperation in medical services and bio-industries as well as cooperation between SMEs of both countries.”