Seoul needs flexibility, diplomatic shrewdness
The recently ended trilateral and bilateral summit talks among the leaders of South Korea, China and Japan showed the plight of Seoul walking a tightrope amid troubled relations with its two powerful neighbors.
Their perceptions toward the Moon Jae-in administration, shown in the latest meetings in China, were quite worrisome. In particular, the way Japan treated Moon was awful during a summit between Moon and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Tuesday. While Moon was making opening remarks after Abe's opening statement, a Japanese official who was standing inside the room suddenly interrupted, shouting at the press that they should leave immediately. His voice was so loud that Moon had to pause to see what was going on. Moon looked puzzled. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, who was sitting beside Moon, also stared at the Japanese official.
This kind of thing should have never happened. It was an embarrassing moment for Moon as well as all other South Koreans. The government, of course, should demand Japan explain, and apologize if necessary, for the official's rude behavior.
Regarding an agreement reached the previous day between Moon and Chinese President Xi Jinping, some Japanese media, citing sources from the Japanese government, reported that Moon has "sided with" Xi to increase pressure on the U.S. to ease sanctions on North Korea, portraying him as a "betrayer." These incidents show how the liberal South Korean President is perceived in Japan.
China also used Xi's summit with Moon, which took place in Beijing Monday, to promote its political interests. The Chinese foreign ministry quoted Moon as telling Xi that what's occurring in Hong Kong and Xinjiang is China's internal affairs, indicating that Moon has backed Beijing's official stance on those issues.
As a controversy swirled over this, Cheong Wa Dae had to clarify. Presidential spokeswoman Ko Min-jung said, "President Xi explained that Hong Kong and Xinjiang issues were China's internal affairs, and President Moon said he noted them well."
In that Moon and the South Korean government have maintained "strategic silence" on issues related to Hong Kong and Xinjiang, China's portrayal of Moon as one of its supporters was unexpected ― and embarrassing. It was China's calculated move, of course.
The grim reality is that Seoul has few diplomatic options to improve the regional geopolitical situation. Making it more complicated are the escalating China-U.S. rivalry and the possibility of North Korea's withdrawal from the denuclearization dialogue with the U.S. Flexibility and diplomatic shrewdness are needed more than ever for Seoul to protect its national interest and to strengthen its role as a "mediator" in addressing pressing regional problems.
The recently ended trilateral and bilateral summit talks among the leaders of South Korea, China and Japan showed the plight of Seoul walking a tightrope amid troubled relations with its two powerful neighbors.
Their perceptions toward the Moon Jae-in administration, shown in the latest meetings in China, were quite worrisome. In particular, the way Japan treated Moon was awful during a summit between Moon and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Tuesday. While Moon was making opening remarks after Abe's opening statement, a Japanese official who was standing inside the room suddenly interrupted, shouting at the press that they should leave immediately. His voice was so loud that Moon had to pause to see what was going on. Moon looked puzzled. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, who was sitting beside Moon, also stared at the Japanese official.
This kind of thing should have never happened. It was an embarrassing moment for Moon as well as all other South Koreans. The government, of course, should demand Japan explain, and apologize if necessary, for the official's rude behavior.
Regarding an agreement reached the previous day between Moon and Chinese President Xi Jinping, some Japanese media, citing sources from the Japanese government, reported that Moon has "sided with" Xi to increase pressure on the U.S. to ease sanctions on North Korea, portraying him as a "betrayer." These incidents show how the liberal South Korean President is perceived in Japan.
China also used Xi's summit with Moon, which took place in Beijing Monday, to promote its political interests. The Chinese foreign ministry quoted Moon as telling Xi that what's occurring in Hong Kong and Xinjiang is China's internal affairs, indicating that Moon has backed Beijing's official stance on those issues.
As a controversy swirled over this, Cheong Wa Dae had to clarify. Presidential spokeswoman Ko Min-jung said, "President Xi explained that Hong Kong and Xinjiang issues were China's internal affairs, and President Moon said he noted them well."
In that Moon and the South Korean government have maintained "strategic silence" on issues related to Hong Kong and Xinjiang, China's portrayal of Moon as one of its supporters was unexpected ― and embarrassing. It was China's calculated move, of course.
The grim reality is that Seoul has few diplomatic options to improve the regional geopolitical situation. Making it more complicated are the escalating China-U.S. rivalry and the possibility of North Korea's withdrawal from the denuclearization dialogue with the U.S. Flexibility and diplomatic shrewdness are needed more than ever for Seoul to protect its national interest and to strengthen its role as a "mediator" in addressing pressing regional problems.
