Nam Hyun-woo has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2013, mostly covering business and politics. He currently belongs to the Business Desk where he covers topics such as emerging tech, AI, ICT and Korea's chaebol community. Prior to joining the team, he was the paper's correspondent for the presidential office of Korea during the Yoon Suk Yeol and Moon Jae-in administrations.
Democracy summit, Olympics boycott test Seoul's balancing act
President Moon Jae-in looks at documents at Cheong Wa Dae, Seoul, before the virtual Summit for Democracy, Thursday. Yonhap
By Nam Hyun-woo
By Nam Hyun-woo
South Korea's tricky balancing act between the United States and China is becoming ever more precarious, as the Washington-led democracy summit and Beijing Olympics boycotts have left the Moon Jae-in administration caught in the middle of the two superpowers.
President Moon spoke at a U.S.-hosted summit aimed at countering China, Thursday (KST), just a day after Seoul took a step closer to Beijing's side regarding the Washington-led diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics.
Moon participated in the leaders' plenary session of the virtual Summit for Democracy, which was hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden. In the two-day summit, more than 100 countries joined the U.S. campaign to “strengthen democracy and defend against authoritarianism,” with China and Russia conspicuously not invited.
In the session, the President addressed general ideas on democracy, sharing South Korea's achievements in democracy and its commitment to bolstering democracies in international society, although the full details of his speech were not disclosed because the plenary session was a closed-door videoconference.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at the virtual Summit for Democracy, in the South Court Auditorium, at the White House in Washington, D.C., Thursday. EPA-Yonhap
Though Moon attempted to maintain a low profile at the summit, his participation is coming as a burden for South Korea, which counts China as its largest trading partner. When South Korea decided to deploy a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery on its soil, the country suffered economic retaliation from Beijing that resulted in serious contractions to major South Korean businesses operating in China.
“It is very natural for South Korea to participate in the Summit for Democracy, given its status as one of the leading democracies in Asia,” a Cheong Wa Dae official said. “China and Russia are also understanding South Korea's participation in the summit.”
A woman wearing a face mask stands in front of the logo for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics before the Olympics flame exhibition tour at the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Thursday. Reuters-Yonhap
Moon's participation in the summit came after the presidential office said earlier that the government was “not considering a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics,” which is interpreted as a move in China's favor, as Beijing is facing a string of no-shows from a number of U.S. allies and other Western countries.
Since Washington announced its official snubbing of the Games, Seoul has been under indirect pressure to join the move, as the U.S. is its most important ally.
However, given its economic partnership with China and President Moon's hope to declare an official end to the Korean War with North Korea on the sidelines of the Games, Seoul is refraining from announcing an official stance regarding the Beijing Olympics.
Meanwhile, other U.S. allies including the U.K., Australia and Canada have said they will not send diplomatic representatives to the Games. The U.K. and Australia are members of AUKUS, a U.S.-led trilateral security pact aimed at countering China, which South Korea is also under pressure to join.
Reflecting the complex dynamics, Cheong Wa Dae's message on the Olympic boycott was also self-contradicting. The senior official said the government was not considering a diplomatic boycott, but at the same time added “no decision has been made on our government's participation in the Games.”
The comment was interpreted as the government's indecisiveness on whether Moon will visit Beijing or form a separate delegation comprised of diplomatic representatives. Following earlier precedents, South Korea could send Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Hwang Hee as the country's representative to the Games, but this will be subject to change depending on Moon's decision.
“With the U.S. and China strengthening their pressure to pull South Korea to their side, a realistic option would be calibrating the level of representatives to visit the Beijing Games,” said Choi Kang, acting president of the Asan Institute for Policy Studies.
“On the other hand, there's a necessity for Moon to speak rather clearly about South Korea's endorsement of democracy, even though he may avoid sensitive matters such as human rights issue,” Choi said. “With the idea of declaring the end to the Korean War in Beijing losing its momentum, the government should separate this agenda from the Games.”
China's welcome message is also a burden for Moon. In a press briefing, China's foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Seoul and Beijing “have been supporting each other in hosting Olympic Games, which demonstrates the friendly, cooperative relations between our two countries and the manner of the big Olympic family.”?
As South Korea's stance of not joining the boycott could be used as a model by China to persuade other countries that are contemplating their own boycotts to attend the Games, pundits said this can be a factor weakening the Seoul-Washington alliance.