Moon out of step with Biden ahead of Korea-US summit

President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden / Korea Times file

By Kang Seung-woo

The South Korean government appears to be out of sync with the new U.S. administration in regard to issues involving North Korea and other diplomatic priorities.

Diplomatic observers attribute the seemingly ongoing diplomatic disagreement to the lack of communication channels between the allies, expressing concerns that it may adversely affect next month's summit between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden.

On the occasion of the third anniversary of the inter-Korean summit, Tuesday, Moon said the time was approaching again for the two Koreas to resume dialogue. On April 27, 2018, Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed in their Panmunjeom Declaration on making joint efforts to achieve co-prosperity, establish lasting peace and reunite the two Koreas.

“It is questionable how President Moon will seek to improve inter-Korean ties given that South Korea and the United States are still struggling to find measures to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table,” said Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University.

Moon also expressed hope that his in-person summit with Biden, scheduled to be held in late May in Washington, D.C., will serve as a chance for further cementing the alliance, closely coordinating North Korea policy and setting the right direction.

“As there is a limit for President Moon to mediate between the U.S. and North Korea, his pledge to normalize inter-Korean relations does not make sense,” Park added.

The Biden administration is still in the final stages of its policy review of the totalitarian state, which is expected to be unveiled within this month.

The lack of communication between the allies was also evident in Moon's speech during his meeting with his senior aides, Monday.

“All countries spoke in one voice about solidarity and cooperation when they were not feeling pressured. When their domestic situations turned urgent, however, they began to seek ways to survive on their own by sealing off borders, restricting vaccine exports and stockpiling doses, as both solidarity and international cooperation took a backseat,” Moon said.

“We have to face up to the grim reality of international politics while pursuing international solidarity and cooperation. It is in times like these when we should unite internally and address challenges wisely.”

Although he did not specify a country restricting vaccine exports, his remarks are believed to have been a shot at the U.S., which currently has sufficient vaccine supply to inoculate its entire population.

However, 12 hours after Moon's apparent criticism of the U.S.' vaccine nationalism, the White House announced it plans to provide up to 60 million doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine to other countries, raising another question over whether Seoul and Washington are in communication with each other.

“I do not believe that South Korea and the U.S. are communicating well with each other,” Park said.

The professor said South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong's unveiling of Korea-U.S. negotiations for a “vaccine swap” is another discord between the two countries.

“Despite the U.S. government's principle of providing vaccines to other countries, Chung made public their ongoing discussions, discomforting the U.S. If there were a proper communication channel, he should have made it public after the two sides reached an agreement behind closed doors,” Park said, adding that it was a de facto diplomatic discourtesy.

“Currently, there seems to be no active communication channels between the allies unlike previously when Lee Do-hoon, the former special representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun actively exchanged opinions on bilateral issues.”

The diplomatic disagreement is feared to negatively affect the first Moon-Biden meeting.

“There are apparent disagreements between South Korea and the U.S. on issues involving North Korea and China. However, should the current lack of communication channels continue, the summit is likely to end without producing any results,” Park said.