Korea favors Japan over China in reference to 3-way ties

President Yoon Suk Yeol poses with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, left, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, second from right, and Chinese Premier Li Qiang, during a summit between the 10 nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Korea, Japan and China in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sept. 6 (local time). Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hun

By Lee Hyo-jin

In recent months, the Yoon Suk Yeol administration has been increasingly using the term “Korea-Japan-China” instead of “Korea-China-Japan” to refer to trilateral relations between Korea and its two neighboring countries.

During his attendance at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-related summits in Jakarta last week, President Yoon again stressed the importance of relations between the three countries while placing China in the third position.

“The reactivation of cooperation among Korea, Japan and China will become a stepping stone for a new leap in ASEAN Plus Three cooperation,” Yoon said during a summit with Chinese Premier Li Qiang held on the sidelines of the multilateral event as he called for a swift resumption of “Korea-Japan-China” talks.

The order of Yoon's words drew speculation that his administration is putting a bigger emphasis on bilateral relations with Tokyo than Beijing.

The Global Times, Beijing's English-language mouthpiece, linked Yoon's remarks to the Korean government's recent efforts to express friendly relations with Japan.

“When South Korea emphasizes its 'close relationship' with Japan, the balance among China, Japan, and South Korea may be disrupted, which should be taken seriously by the South Korean side,” read its column published on Friday.

While “Korea-China-Japan” is more commonly used by Koreans when describing the relations between the three nations, “Korea-Japan-China” is the official term when referring to the trilateral summit, according to Seoul's foreign ministry.

After the inaugural event held in 2008 in Fukuoka, Japan, the second meeting took place in China's capital city of Beijing in 2009 and then on Korea's Jeju Island the following year.

The three nations took turns hosting the meeting, which was convened eight times before it came to a halt after the last one in China in 2019, due mainly to strained relations between Korea and Japan over historical grievances.

But amid improved Seoul-Tokyo relations, the ninth edition of the summit is widely expected to take place within this year in Korea.

“Since Japan will be the next host of the event after the one to be held in Korea, a 'Korea-Japan-China' summit is the official term used by our government in accordance with diplomatic protocol,” a foreign ministry official told The Korea Times, Monday.

But, the official said there are no protocols on how to list the countries in other contexts.

“We have been using both terms in various situations, so it would be an exaggeration to say that the government is only using the term 'Korea-Japan-China' to show closer ties with Japan,” he said.

The ministry's stance appeared to differ somewhat from the presidential office's earlier explanation that the expression used by Yoon reflects the government's foreign policy approach.

“In general, our government is currently emphasizing closer cooperation on technology, information and security with the U.S. and Japan based on the values of freedom and solidarity,” a senior presidential official told reporters, Sept. 6.

“In this regard, we would say 'U.S-North Korea summit' rather than 'North Korea-U.S. summit,' and 'Korea-Japan-China' rather than 'Korea-China-Japan.'”