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Choo Jae-woo

Choo Jae-woo is a professor at Kyung Hee University. The views expressed here are the author's own and do not reflect the editorial direction of The Korea Times.

Choo Jae-woo

Motives behind Xi’s visit to Pyongyang

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s two-day visit to North Korea raises numerous questions. Many observers are confused about his goals — why at this time, and what he achieved from the meeting. They believe Xi was concerned about Pyongyang’s connection with Moscow being too tight for Beijing’s diplomatic standing in their trilateral relationship. Does North Korean leader Kim Jung-un play China off Russia? Why was North Korean or Korean Peninsula disarmament not discussed? Could Beijing be acknowledging Pyongyang as a nuclear weapon state? My conclusion is no to the first two questions and yes to the last. After Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Pyongyang in April, rumors spread that Xi would visit North Korea soon. Many thought a July visit would be a better option politically as it would mark the 65th anniversary of the friendship treaty between the two countries. No Chinese leader has visited on the event. After the foreign minister returned, Xi would then visit two months later. It would be odd to delay the visit beyond two months diplomatically. Naturally, a question ar

21h agoBy Choo Jae-woo
Motives behind Xi’s visit to Pyongyang
Choo Jae-woo

Restoring trust in strained Korea-US alliance

Countries build alliances for security and mutual interests. Once created, the relationship must be nurtured. Success requires dedication. Verification, confirmation and assurance establish commitment based on allies' honesty. Through shared ideals, opinions and outlooks, allies demonstrate honesty. Thus, honesty underpins all alliances. Being honest about your alliance commitment requires transparency. Honesty promotes transparency, which builds trust with allies. Allies are more ready to divulge secrets and important information to defend their cooperation in a trusting relationship. This is crucial to the alliance, especially for military operations. Allies fight and deter a common enemy militarily. Deterrence relies on allies synchronizing military activities with a shared understanding of the enemy and present conditions. Allies must agree on these issues and trust each other to share military information. Breach of confidentiality threatens alliance integrity. When a relationship appears dishonest and opaque, trust and confidence can decrease, prompting concerns about betrayal. T

Apr 29, 2026By Choo Jae-woo
Restoring trust in strained Korea-US alliance
Choo Jae-woo

What lies ahead for China-NK-Russia coalition after Victory Day gathering

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin participated in a ceremony held in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, known as “Victory Day.” This marked the first meeting of leaders from the three states since the 1959 military parade commemorating the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. That event put the Cold War dynamics in East Asia on display, while also highlighting solidarity within the communist bloc. Looking back, that signified the opening stage of the East Asian Cold War. In 1960, Sino-Soviet relations declined significantly. However, in the subsequent year, the three regimes established alliances, resulting in the formation of the “North Korea-China-Soviet Union triangle.” This year's Victory Day ceremony may be history repeating itself, albeit in a new form. The protocol established by China highlighted this symbolism. Photographs documenting President Xi Jinping’s activities reveal that Putin and Kim were consistently present alongside him. The im

Sep 4, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
What lies ahead for China-NK-Russia coalition after Victory Day gathering
Choo Jae-woo

Guiding light lit in Washington for Lee’s China policy

On Aug. 23, both President Lee Jae Myung and his special envoy to China departed Korea, albeit on separate paths. As Lee made his way to Washington via Tokyo, the envoy arrived in Beijing. The envoy’s meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi coincided with the 33rd anniversary of the normalization of relations between Korea and China. Lee’s decision could be seen as a strategic maneuver, assuming that was his intention. The timing may have been ill-advised, as it restrained Chinese President Xi Jinping from receiving him. Had the envoy’s visit occurred either prior to or following Lee’s trip to Washington, it could have saved Xi’s face and provided numerous incentives for engagement. Never had the envoy of Korea’s newly elected president not been greeted by the counterpart’s head of state. The Chinese Communist Party issued a severe warning in the state-run Global Times on Aug. 25, saying that for Korea to sustain a positive relationship with China, it should avoid targeting any third parties and ensure that bilateral relations are not constrained by external influe

Aug 28, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
Guiding light lit in Washington for Lee’s China policy
Choo Jae-woo

Lee’s pragmatic diplomacy in doubt

As I predicted in my article “Is Lee Jae Myung’s diplomatic shift an attempt at redemption?” on Feb. 13, the president’s cognitive dissonance is already evident in diplomatic contacts, particularly inter-Korean ones. He did not attend the NATO summit this month; some in Korea suspect he didn’t want to join a multilateral gathering with a hostile agenda toward China and Russia. The decision shows that Lee is abandoning his pragmatic foreign policy. Lee’s actions so far have merely avoided criticisms of his pragmatic foreign policy. Multilateral engagement was part of the plan. He attended the G7 summit in Canada less than two weeks into his presidency. After the U.S. bombed Iran, the presidential office announced his NATO summit absence on June 22. The president was reportedly worried about a lack of a “control tower” throughout the turmoil. “Had the Cabinet been fully staffed and the response system more complete, the president may have had the leeway to attend NATO," the Democratic Party of Korea's (DPK) chief aide for communications, Park Sang-hyuk, told YTN Radio.

Jun 30, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
Lee’s pragmatic diplomacy in doubt
Choo Jae-woo

Relax, Korean pundits: It's not happening

Since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, there have been several theories about Korean affairs. Some of the most notable stories are the threat of reciprocal tariffs on Korean imports, the evacuation of a sizable portion (about 4,500 soldiers) of the 28,500-strong U.S. forces here and the possibility of resuming summits with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. They simply will not occur, and will stay “a story being a story” at best. Pessimism stems from the potential harm that these policies will do to U.S. strategic interests if they are executed. Without a viable alternative, the U.S. will suffer a significant and long-term strategic loss. On April 2, Trump personally announced that 25 percent reciprocal tariffs will be levied on all Korean imports to the U.S. Trump felt the step necessary for political reasons. While he claims it is about reducing America’s trade imbalances, it is actually about his commitment to limiting China’s efforts to divert and relocate its export outlets to U.S.-friendly countries or allies. Trump wants to prohibit China and its enter

Jun 2, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
Relax, Korean pundits: It's not happening
Choo Jae-woo

One critical component missing in Trump’s 'reverse Kissinger' strategy

As U.S. President Donald Trump and his team seek a tough agreement with Ukraine and Russia to end their war, many pundits refer to his approach as a “reverse Kissinger” strategy. Most people are pessimistic about the possibility of such an approach for entirely the wrong reasons. The goal of the policy is not to negotiate peace between two warring states. It is more about a long-term strategy to help America, such as diverting Russia’s attention away from China and serving as a go-between for Moscow and Beijing. That way, Washington can focus solely on its competition with Beijing not only for the next ten “decisive” years, as claimed by the US National Security Strategy 2022, but also for the next 40 years, as J.D. Vance declared at the Munich Security Conference in February 2024. What these American experts miss with their pessimism is a clear understanding of détente and the mechanical work of triangular relations. Détente did not occur as a result of the United States profiting from the deteriorating relationship between China and then the Soviet Union. It was also not

Apr 29, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
One critical component missing in Trump’s 'reverse Kissinger' strategy
Choo Jae-woo

China’s odds against Trump’s America

Many feared that U.S. President Donald Trump’s return would revive his nationalist, transactional foreign policy. Since his January inauguration, his erratic words and behavior have alarmed many. He repeatedly parrots Russian President Vladimir Putin’s justifications for the Ukraine war, bolstering his case. Furthermore, his ambassador to the United Nations opposed a resolution that sought to condemn Russia's actions, along with China, North Korea and other autocracies, while simultaneously endorsing a resolution that exonerated it. Since his first term five years ago, Trump has threatened to abandon NATO unless member states improve spending, again pressuring friends and allies over cost-sharing. He has announced his departure from the World Health Organization and the Paris Agreement, but not the World Trade Organization. Instead, he declared a strategy to eliminate the privileges that China currently enjoys as a developing state. Chinese competitors may see Trump’s America as retreating from its position as a global leader, presenting an opportunity to rise above, if not to r

Mar 31, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
China’s odds against Trump’s America
Choo Jae-woo

Is Lee Jae-myung's diplomatic shift an attempt at redemption?

Humans can alter their beliefs overnight for selfish reasons, however, making such behavioral changes in succession can be problematic. Unpredictable politicians throw morality into doubt. If legal charges for law infractions and disorderly conduct are filed, the politician will lose public trust. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, has followed this small plan through his whole life. Lee’s claims are telling. He is involved in 12 charges, including perjury, fraudulent information disclosure during elections (general and presidential), false allegations, violations of the Public Official Election Act and preferential treatment in development. Cognitive dissonance — one inconsistency leading to another — is evident throughout Lee’s career.

Feb 13, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
Is Lee Jae-myung's diplomatic shift an attempt at redemption?
Choo Jae-woo

'Make Korea great again'

Professor Yan Xuetong of Tsinghua University in China, who is known for being outspoken and controversial, did not disappoint us with his piece “Why China isn’t scared of Trump,” which was published in Foreign Affairs in December 2024. Yan contends that Chinese leaders are not dreading Trump’s return because of his uncertain loyalty to allies, political isolationism, economic protectionism and less ideological policies. Yan fails to see or explain why anti-China sentiment in the United States is strong and nonpartisan. Simultaneously, he does not appear to understand Trump’s political stance on Taiwan, or the South China Sea for that matter. Instead, he openly asserts Trump’s unwillingness to “shape China’s political system to conform to its Western counterparts, and he is therefore unlikely to be keen to intervene in China’s domestic affairs.” For one thing, Trump signed the Taiwan Travel Act in 2018, paving the path for high-level conversations and visits between U.S. and Taiwanese officials. He is a typical Republican pol

Jan 7, 2025By Choo Jae-woo
'Make Korea great again'
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