Korea needs to consider joining Quad to make 'Penta'

By Park Jin

With President Moon Jae-in having less than a year left in office, Korea is faced with mounting challenges in the areas of diplomacy, security and economy.

The external challenges include discord in its alliance with the U.S., stagnating relations with Japan and the suspended trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan. On the security front, the Moon administration has dogmatically pursued its "Peace Process on the Korean Peninsula."

Nevertheless, inter-Korean relations have only regressed and North Korea's nuclear and missile threats have been noticeably augmented. In the economic area, Korea has been increasingly caught between the U.S. and China in the global competition to obtain semiconductors, electric batteries and rare-earth materials as well as in the contest for superiority in artificial intelligence and 5G technologies.

In the meantime, the Quad, a quadrilateral consultative body made up of four democratic nations active in the Indo-Pacific region ― the U.S., Japan, Australia and India ― has been formed and upgraded. For the reasons of democracy, peace and prosperity, Korea should revitalize its estranged alliance with the U.S. and join the Quad to meet the challenges.

The Biden administration has prioritized alliances and multilateralism instead of Trump's "America first" approach. The first virtual Quad summit held in Tokyo on March 12 was a major step heralding this renewed U.S. foreign policy. The four Quad countries have created an informal coalition of democracies to establish a new regional order in the Indo-Pacific.

At the heart of the Quad is the "free and open Indo-Pacific" strategy to uphold democratic values and repudiate coercion. The rule of law, freedom of navigation and overflight, the peaceful resolution of disputes, democratic values and territorial integrity are the key components of the proposed "Quad spirit." These are essential requirements for the national interests of South Korea.

The problem is that Korea is being alienated from these multilateral initiatives to reshape the regional order. Korea was initially regarded as a potential candidate to join the "Quad Plus" together with Vietnam and New Zealand. But this idea has not yet transpired due to the Moon government's apparent reservations.

The Moon administration has shown reluctance to joining the Quad, putting "transparency, openness and inclusiveness" as conditions. The fact that the Quad concept was originally contemplated by Japan and Korea's concerns about antagonizing China explain its reticence.

There are three compelling reasons for Korea's participation in the Quad coalition.

First, Korea should reinvigorate its blood-forged alliance with the U.S. by resolving dissonances and promoting shared values of freedom, democracy, human rights, and rule of law, which also reflect the "Quad spirit."

Key to protecting democracy is freedom and human rights. As a vibrant democracy in Asia, South Korea should advocate freedom of speech and speak out on human rights violations in Asia, such as in Myanmar, in tandem with the Quad nations.

Especially, it should not ignore the inhumane sufferings of the people in North Korea. Human rights are universal values, and North Korea should not be an exception using the excuse of inter-Korean detente. South Korea should also join hands with like-minded democracies to strengthen "democratic resilience" and counter coercive diplomacy in the region.

Second, South Korea should leverage the combined solidarity of the Quad to deal with the security threat on the Korean Peninsula and to effectively respond to regional security issues. The Quad member countries directly or indirectly participated in the Korean War, sacrificing for and contributing to freedom and peace in South Korea.

That very freedom and peace is now being seriously jeopardized by North Korea's nuclear proliferation. Denuclearizing the North requires a robust ROK-U.S. alliance and support from a regional multilateral cooperation framework.

The Quad has reaffirmed its commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea. South Korea also needs to protect strategic supplies, such as energy resources and rare materials, coming to Korea under the freedom of navigation.

The South China Sea is a vital strategic area for South Korea, as 30 percent to 40 percent of Korean exports and 90 percent of Korean energy imports flow through this crucial maritime zone. Escalation of military tension in the area will adversely impact its economy.

Third, South Korea should explore and expand new economic opportunities for the future in addition to producing semiconductors and electric batteries. The combined GDP of the four Quad economies amounts to $31 trillion, accounting for 35 percent of the global GDP.

South Korea's trade dependence on the Quad is around 25 percent, equivalent to that of China. The four Quad nations are, much like Korea, highly reliant on trade with China. Thus, the argument that Korea's high dependence on trade with China makes joining the Quad an impediment to its partnership with China is invalid.

South Korea and the U.S. have increased their mutual trade and investments through the successful ROK-U.S. Free Trade Agreement. Korea has also signed FTAs with Australia and India, and expects to enter indirect free trade relations with Japan through the recently signed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). By facilitating regional trade, investments and services, the Quad will greatly contribute to economic growth and prosperity in the region.

Seoul should widen and deepen its cooperation with the Quad nations to develop core technologies such as artificial intelligence, 5G, clean energy, bio-health and cybersecurity. Collaboration for coronavirus vaccine production and equitable access and collective efforts to combat climate change are also important.

South Korea is a dynamic economic powerhouse located in the geopolitical pivot of Northeast Asia. The strategic choice that Korea makes between the U.S. and China will significantly affect the political, economic and security environment of the Indo-Pacific region. Korea joining the Quad is only common sense and an inevitable course of history.

It is only natural for a state that has shared values of liberal democracy and rule of law to join the Quad and make a "Penta," a group of five. Korea should not retract into being an outlier but take a leading role in the formulation of a new democratic order in the region.

Park Jin (parkjin916@naver.com) is a lawmaker of the opposition People Power Party. He chairs the party's special committee on diplomacy and security and previously served as president of the Korea-America Association. The views expressed in the above article are the author's own and do not reflect the editorial direction of The Korea Times.