Pragmatic diplomacy needed to protect national interests
U.S. President Joe Biden has launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) during his visit to Japan on Monday. The framework is Biden's new economic initiative to step up cooperation in supply chains, digital trade, clean energy and anti-corruption efforts among member nations in the region.
The IPEF launch came a day after Biden wrapped up his three-day visit to South Korea, where he and President Yoon Suk-yeol agreed to upgrade the Korea-U.S. security alliance to a "global comprehensive strategic alliance." The two leaders committed to strengthen extended deterrence against North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats and forge an economic and technology partnership.
Thirteen countries, including the U.S., Korea, Japan, India and Australia, are founding members of the IPEF, which represents 2.5 billion people, or 32.3 percent of the world's total population. Their combined GDP accounts for 40.9 percent of the global total. Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, can benefit greatly from its membership in the new economic framework. Korea can also play a leading role in the process of setting wide-ranging rules for economics and trade in the Indo-Pacific region.
However, Beijing is strongly against the establishment of the IPEF which is seen as a U.S.-initiated international coalition against an increasingly assertive China. The U.S. and its allies and partners said that the IPEF is being pursued on the principle of openness, transparency and inclusiveness. But the initiative is apparently aimed at excluding China from global supply chains to counter its growing influence in the region.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi denounced the U.S. move as a strategy of creating division, inciting confrontation and undermining peace. He added that the IPEF will inevitably fall in the end. The Taiwan issue has added fuel to the fire. In Tokyo on Monday, Biden said the U.S. military would intervene should China attack Taiwan. His remark seems to indicate a departure from the U.S. endorsement of the "One China" policy.
Against this backdrop, there are growing concerns that South Korea could face retaliation from China for participating in the IPEF and moving closer toward the U.S. Korea had been increasingly torn between the U.S. and China amid the great power competition. But now Seoul appears to have chosen the U.S. to guarantee its security and develop the bilateral alliance further into a comprehensive partnership.
Thus, experts point out that South Korea can no longer maintain a policy of relying on the U.S. for security and depending on China for economic growth. It is not a matter of choice. It is inevitable for Seoul to deepen its alliance and partnership with the U.S. at a time when the geopolitical situation is changing rapidly amid the mounting Sino-U.S. rivalry, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and heightening military threats from North Korea.
The Yoon administration should work out measures to cope with China's possible retaliation, as seen in the U.S. deployment of a THAAD anti-missile battery on Korean soil. Seoul needs to demonstrate that its enhanced alliance with the U.S. and its membership in the IPEF are not aimed at hurting China's core interests. It also should make efforts to maintain close economic and trade ties with its largest trading partner. That's why the Yoon government needs pragmatic diplomacy to protect the national interests.
U.S. President Joe Biden has launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) during his visit to Japan on Monday. The framework is Biden's new economic initiative to step up cooperation in supply chains, digital trade, clean energy and anti-corruption efforts among member nations in the region.
The IPEF launch came a day after Biden wrapped up his three-day visit to South Korea, where he and President Yoon Suk-yeol agreed to upgrade the Korea-U.S. security alliance to a "global comprehensive strategic alliance." The two leaders committed to strengthen extended deterrence against North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats and forge an economic and technology partnership.
Thirteen countries, including the U.S., Korea, Japan, India and Australia, are founding members of the IPEF, which represents 2.5 billion people, or 32.3 percent of the world's total population. Their combined GDP accounts for 40.9 percent of the global total. Korea, Asia's fourth-largest economy, can benefit greatly from its membership in the new economic framework. Korea can also play a leading role in the process of setting wide-ranging rules for economics and trade in the Indo-Pacific region.
However, Beijing is strongly against the establishment of the IPEF which is seen as a U.S.-initiated international coalition against an increasingly assertive China. The U.S. and its allies and partners said that the IPEF is being pursued on the principle of openness, transparency and inclusiveness. But the initiative is apparently aimed at excluding China from global supply chains to counter its growing influence in the region.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi denounced the U.S. move as a strategy of creating division, inciting confrontation and undermining peace. He added that the IPEF will inevitably fall in the end. The Taiwan issue has added fuel to the fire. In Tokyo on Monday, Biden said the U.S. military would intervene should China attack Taiwan. His remark seems to indicate a departure from the U.S. endorsement of the "One China" policy.
Against this backdrop, there are growing concerns that South Korea could face retaliation from China for participating in the IPEF and moving closer toward the U.S. Korea had been increasingly torn between the U.S. and China amid the great power competition. But now Seoul appears to have chosen the U.S. to guarantee its security and develop the bilateral alliance further into a comprehensive partnership.
Thus, experts point out that South Korea can no longer maintain a policy of relying on the U.S. for security and depending on China for economic growth. It is not a matter of choice. It is inevitable for Seoul to deepen its alliance and partnership with the U.S. at a time when the geopolitical situation is changing rapidly amid the mounting Sino-U.S. rivalry, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and heightening military threats from North Korea.
The Yoon administration should work out measures to cope with China's possible retaliation, as seen in the U.S. deployment of a THAAD anti-missile battery on Korean soil. Seoul needs to demonstrate that its enhanced alliance with the U.S. and its membership in the IPEF are not aimed at hurting China's core interests. It also should make efforts to maintain close economic and trade ties with its largest trading partner. That's why the Yoon government needs pragmatic diplomacy to protect the national interests.
