ED Repeated diplomatic bungles

Yoon needs more prudent, practical diplomatic approach

Bad things can happen to a country ― the important point is, how they are handled.

However, President Yoon Suk Yeol and his administration have often aggravated problems while dealing with them.

When at least 158 people died in a crowd disaster in Itaewon last October, the government focused on minimizing its ill effects, failing to fully comfort the bereaved families.

A similar thing is happening in the field of diplomacy. Controversy is still brewing over the U.S.' alleged spying on its allies, including Korea. But Seoul seems even busier than Washington in telling the public that it is no big deal and should not be allowed to hurt bilateral ties.

Kim Tae-hyo, the principal deputy national security adviser, is the epicenter of such problematic responses.

Leaving for Washington to fine-tune Yoon's state visit to the U.S., Kim said he would not raise any issues concerning the eavesdropping allegation. “The two countries agreed that much of the leaked documents' contents were fabricated,” he said. For him, what mattered was only the accuracy of the leaked facts ― not the bugging itself.

Upon arrival in Washington, Kim said, “We've found no circumstances where the wiretapping was malicious.” We are speechless. Eavesdropping is prohibited even among individuals, regardless of a perpetrator's intentions. This man deals with national security and reportedly has the president's ear. When Yoon returned from Tokyo after conceding seemingly everything and taking nothing in return, a Korean victim of sex slavery asked, “Is President Yoon Korean or Japanese?” Likewise, people can't help but ask: Is adviser Kim Korean or American?

“Even the Japanese side was surprised (with Seoul's idea on how to solve the forced labor issue on its own),” Kim boasted proudly after the Tokyo fiasco. “We did not try to get something in return from Japan but decided to go in globally big ways.” However, Japan went a few steps back in its latest Diplomatic Bluebook. Tokyo did not reiterate its rhetoric to follow previous governments' historical interpretations, while further strengthening its sovereignty claims over the Dokdo islets.

Will the rest of the world rebuke Tokyo for breaching diplomatic trust or laugh at Seoul for its diplomatic naivety? If there is one sympathizer, it is Washington. President Joe Biden, who issued a welcoming statement regarding the Korea-Japan agreement at midnight, will also give a hearty welcome to Yoon later this month. The two leaders will likely wrap up the surveillance scandal with some nice words. Biden may ease his pressure on economic matters, including in the field of semiconductors, in return ― if only temporarily.

Many diplomatic experts, including conservatives, express concerns about the nearly obsessive adherence of this government to the U.S. and Japan. These are legitimate worries, given today's global political landscape, driven not by ideologies or automatic alliances but by national interests and the continuously changing balance between superpowers. Most middle powers, including India, Brazil and Turkey, have formed a non-aligned group in the 21st century. Even Japan, most keenly aware of China's political and military emergence, deals with Beijing under the table regarding economic issues.

Yes, the U.S. will remain South Korea's sole ally for the foreseeable future. Seoul should also cooperate with Tokyo in many areas. North Korea will likely continue to be what it is now.

However, all this cannot explain or justify Yoon's “trilateral alliance-or-nothing” diplomacy. The binary thinking of the president and his national security czar puts the nation on shaky diplomatic ground and it could all very much backfire.

Koreans remember Kim's previous blind dash for an intelligence pact with Japan and how that led to a widespread backlash, forcing ex-President Lee Myung-bak to visit Dokdo, which froze the bilateral relationship for years. Kim might wish to melt the ties with his own hands. However, no one can tell when Koreans' collective suppressed anger and simmering disgruntlement with servile diplomacy will explode and how.

Yoon must think deeply about how long he and his top security aide could and should continue with their current stance.