Quotes of the Day:
"The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon."
- George Washington
“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years”
- Abraham Lincoln
“A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
- Abraham Lincoln
“It is much easier at all times to prevent an evil than to rectify mistakes.”
- George Washington
1. Seoul urges N. Korea to return to dialogue as Beijing Olympics wrap up
2. Worth the wait (new US Ambassador to the ROK)
3. S. Korea's defense minister, U.S. Marine chief discuss regional security, alliance
4. USFK receives latest Boeing Apache helicopters at Camp Humphreys
5. Seoul city to provide health care, education support to North Korean defectors
6. Tensions are escalating between N. Korea’s security checkpoints and new quarantine checkpoints
7. Lecture held for North Korea officials in China hints at expansion of China-North Korea trade
8. Kim Jong Un gifts fighter pilots with longcoats to mark founding anniversary of N. Korea’s military
9. South Korea's presidential election won't change its foreign policy
1. Seoul urges N. Korea to return to dialogue as Beijing Olympics wrap up
But we always do such a good job of jumping to conclusions.
Excerpts:
"The unification ministry will keep a close watch on North Korea's activities, preparing for all possibilities, instead of jumping to conclusions regarding the North's next moves," she told a regular press briefing.
"We once again urge North Korea to choose the path for dialogue and cooperation for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," she added.
Seoul urges N. Korea to return to dialogue as Beijing Olympics wrap up | Yonhap News Agency
SEOUL, Feb. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's unification ministry on Monday urged North Korea to return to dialogue amid speculation Pyongyang may resume major weapons tests following the end of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
North Korea conducted seven rounds of missile tests in January, but refrained from shows of force during the Olympics period which ran from Feb. 4-20.
Asked to comment on the possibility of Pyongyang resuming its weapons tests, Lee Jong-joo, spokesperson for Seoul's unification ministry handling inter-Korean affairs, said the government is closely monitoring the North's moves while preparing for "all possibilities."
"The unification ministry will keep a close watch on North Korea's activities, preparing for all possibilities, instead of jumping to conclusions regarding the North's next moves," she told a regular press briefing.
"We once again urge North Korea to choose the path for dialogue and cooperation for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," she added.
The North has been recently upping the ante with a series of missile tests and even hinted at the possibility of breaking its yearslong moratorium on nuclear and long-range missile testing amid an impasse in nuclear negotiations with the United States.
scaaet@yna.co.kr
(END)
2. Worth the wait (new US Ambassador to the ROK)
Monday
February 21, 2022
Worth the wait
Kathleen Stephens
The author was U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea from 2008 to 2011. She is the president of the Korea Economic Institute of America located in Washington, D.C.
The White House announced on Feb. 11 President Biden’s pick to be the new U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea: Philip Goldberg, now serving as U.S. Ambassador to Colombia. Though not well-known to Koreans, Ambassador Goldberg is one of America’s most seasoned and skilled career diplomats. He is an inspired choice for Seoul. His nomination was worth the wait.
Before getting to why I think Ambassador Goldberg is the right man at the right time in Seoul, there are two canards to dispel. The first is that the year-long wait for the nomination, while ambassadors to neighboring posts such as Japan and China were named, reflects the Biden administration according a lower priority to Korea, or even subtle dissatisfaction with the Moon administration. It’s simply untrue. Rather, it is evidence of the overall difficulty — for a variety of reasons that have nothing to do with Korea — the Biden Administration has had in filling out its team, combined with an understanding that the American ambassador to Korea remains one of the most consequential diplomatic berths overseas. In the meantime, the energetic, well-liked Charge ‘daffaires Christopher Del Corso has ably led the talented U.S. Embassy in Seoul.
The second canard has to do with how the Korean press has headlined Goldberg’s nomination. Goldberg’s resume features a panoply of senior positions in Washington and abroad, including three ambassadorships and a three-year-plus stint as Assistant Secretary of the State Department’s influential Bureau of Intelligence and Research. But to read the headlines it would seem Goldberg was picked because of his short stint coordinating with the UN on sanctions against North Korea, and hence the U.S. is sending a hard-line “sanctions enforcer” to Seoul. While understandable to focus on his “Korea experience,” this slant on Goldberg’s putative views is misleading. More telling is that virtually every country or issue that Goldberg has been involved in — Cuba, Colombia, Kosovo, Bolivia, the Philippines — has required a nuanced consideration of the utility of a whole array of diplomatic tools, carrots and sticks, incentives and disincentives, to achieve progress through diplomatic means. Ambassador Goldberg understands that sanctions have utility as well as limitations. He will be a thoughtful, respected voice in Seoul, Washington and New York in this ongoing discussion.
Still, I hear my Korean friends ask me, why are you so enthusiastic about Goldberg? Perhaps it’s natural that as a career diplomat myself I would favor such a background, but is it always the most effective? My answer is that I don’t think excellent ambassadors are always career diplomats. In Korea, among the former American ambassadors I most admire is James Lilley, who was a career intelligence officer, and James Laney, a scholar and friend of then-President Jimmy Carter. Both played pivotal and positive roles at critical moments in Korea. I consider both mentors and models to those of us who followed.
But whatever his or her background, a successful ambassador has to combine effectiveness overseas with credibility in one’s own capital. This is easier said than done. Phil Goldberg is strongly positioned to do so. He has repeatedly been sent overseas to operate in the most sensitive of environments, and established the kind of rapport and insights that allow him to build strong, honest relationships abroad as well as to reflect back to Washington the realities on the ground. And his assignments in Washington, notably as Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research, have allowed him to nurture the networks of contacts and credibility that will make him a player in the capital, not just a voice from the field. This bodes well for U.S.-ROK coordination.
I have seen Ambassador Goldberg in action both overseas and in Washington. We first met in Pristina, Kosovo, where he led the U.S. Mission there 2004-2006. I was Washington’s main negotiator as we sought to move forward after the Kosovo war, and it was not easy. I was in Pristina often, and even more often on the phone with Phil. I relied on his contacts on the ground, his assessment of the situation, and his analysis of the options going forward as we confronted growing instability and impatience in Kosovo, and unrest in the broader region. I admired and relied on his sound policy judgment, as well as his ability to find humor and humanity in any situation, however dismal. I am confident Koreans will, like me, appreciate his keen intellect, his searching curiosity, and his capacity for empathy and enjoyment.
Ambassador Goldberg still faces a confirmation process in the U.S. Senate before he can present his credentials in Seoul. That process has become unnecessarily and destructively petty and partisan over the years, and so the timing of Ambassador Goldberg’s arrival in Korea cannot be assured. But I look forward to his taking up residence at the lovely U.S. ambassador’s residence in Seoul, Habib House, named after another legendary
American career diplomat, Philip Habib. I am thrilled that Philip Goldberg will be the newest resident of Habib House to carry forward the strengthening of the complex but ever-more-important U.S.-Korea relationship. It’s worth the wait.
3. S. Korea's defense minister, U.S. Marine chief discuss regional security, alliance
S. Korea's defense minister, U.S. Marine chief discuss regional security, alliance
South Korea's Defense Minister Suh Wook, left, meets U.S. Marine Corps chief Gen. David H. Berger at the defense ministry headquarters in Seoul's Yongsan District, Monday. Courtesy of Ministry of Defense
South Korea's Defense Minister Suh Wook met a visiting U.S. Marine Corps chief Monday to discuss regional security and the bilateral alliance, the defense ministry here said.
The meeting between Suh and Gen. David H. Berger came as Seoul and Washington seek to reinforce cooperation to counter North Korea's evolving military threats highlighted by a series of its missile launches last month.
Suh portrayed the two countries' Marine forces as a "symbol of the bilateral alliance" as he commented on their shared history of cooperation since the 1950-53 Korean War, according to the ministry.
Berger assessed that the two countries' combined defense posture is "stronger than at any time" while expressing hopes cooperation between the allies' Marine forces will help further develop the alliance, the ministry said.
Prior to the talks with Suh, Berger met separately with South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Won In-choul and Seoul's Marine Corps Commandant Lt. Gen. Kim Tae-sung. (Yonhap)
4. USFK receives latest Boeing Apache helicopters at Camp Humphreys
Our best helicopters stationed at what Kim Jong-un calls the "fat target."
Monday
February 21, 2022
USFK receives latest Boeing Apache helicopters at Camp Humphreys
A photo of the AH-64 Version 6 helicopter, the latest version of the Apache aircraft, taking flight at the Boeing manufacturing site in Mesa, Arizona, on Jan. 13, 2021. [BOEING]
U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) received deliveries of the latest Boeing Apache attack helicopters to the 4th Battalion (Attack) and 2nd Aviation Regiment (4-2 AB) at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, the force's aviation unit said on Friday.
In a Facebook post Friday, the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade said that it finished fielding the new Apache helicopters slated for Camp Humphreys, the main USFK base on the Korean Peninsula, two days earlier.
This is the first unit outside the continental United States to receive the newest version of the helicopter, dubbed AH-64 Version 6 (V6).
The U.S. Army said on its website last month that a total of 24 of the latest Apache helicopters would be deployed to South Korea through the end of February.
The Apache AH-64E V6 model is the final planned upgrade to the Apache aircraft, replacing the AH-64D Apache attack helicopters. The helicopter features the latest in communications, navigation and sensors, and is equipped with a cognitive decision aiding system.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to fly the Alpha model as well as various versions of the Delta model,” said Lt. Col. Peter Schmitt, the 4-2 Attack Helicopter Battalion Commander, in an interview with the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service, an outlet operated by the U.S. Department of Defense.
“This AH-64E V6 is far superior to prior generations when you take into consideration its lethality, its survivability, its performance and its maneuverability. This might look like an Apache aircraft, but its capabilities far exceed its predecessors. It is a different attack helicopter, not only from its prior generations, but frankly against a near peer or peer threat.”
The Pentagon’s November announcement of the results of its global defense posture review included a decision to station a previously rotational Apache attack helicopter unit along with an artillery division headquarters in South Korea in response to the growing military threat emanating from North Korea.
Apache aircraft were deployed with the U.S. Army in 1987 and first saw combat in 1991, during the U.S. counter-invasion of Iraq during the Persian Gulf war. Since that time, the aircraft has become the main attack of helicopter of multiple nations, including Greece, Japan, Israel, the Netherlands, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.
BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]
5. Seoul city to provide health care, education support to North Korean defectors
Escapees (defectors) should be considered a national asset.
Seoul city to provide health care, education support to North Korean defectors
Seen is the Seoul Metropolitan Government taken on Jan. 26. Korea Times photo by Suh Jae-hoon
Seoul Metropolitan Government will provide North Korean defectors with free health checkups, online tutoring services for students and other support measures to help them better settle in their new homeland, city officials said Monday.
This is the first time in nine years that Seoul has put together support measures for defectors. The capital is home to 6,759 defectors, about 21.4 percent of the total, and about 3.4 billion won ($2.85 million) has been earmarked for this year's support plan, up 1.5 billion won from last year.
Under the plan, free medical examinations will be provided for 200 people aged 14 or older in the first half of the year on a pilot basis, and those in need of medical treatment after examinations will be additionally given 1 million won in nursing fees a year.
The program will be expanded to other defectors either in the second half or next year, officials said.
The city government will also increase the amount of financial aid provided to help new defector households settling in Seoul purchase basic household items, such as TV sets and fans, to 1 million won from 700,000 won.
Also available to defectors will be welfare services for those suffering domestic violence or poverty as well as counseling programs for those experiencing depression or trauma, officials said.
The support plan also includes free e-learning classes and mentoring services for defector students through SeoulLearn, an online education platform, public jobs and community integration programs for defectors.
"The plan aims to help (North Korean defectors) gain complete independence and social integration, not only resettlement," the city government said. (Yonhap)
6. Tensions are escalating between N. Korea’s security checkpoints and new quarantine checkpoints
Anecdotal indicator of potential internal instability
Tensions are escalating between N. Korea’s security checkpoints and new quarantine checkpoints
Two quarantine workers were hospitalized last Tuesday after they were injured in a fight with Ministry of State Security sentries
Disease control workers in Pyongyang (Rodong Sinmun)
With North Korean authorities bringing all inter-regional disease control checkpoints under the direct authority of the Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters, tensions are escalating between existing checkpoints of the Ministry of State Security and the newly reorganized quarantine checkpoints.
Physical fights have even broken out between quarantine inspectors and Ministry of State Security sentries over whether to allow vehicles without mandated disinfecting gear.
According to a Daily NK source on Thursday, two quarantine workers were hospitalized on Tuesday after they were injured in a fight with Ministry of State Security sentries at a “No. 10 checkpoint” near Hyesan, Yanggang Province.
“No. 10 checkpoints” are the Ministry of State Security’s guard posts that inspect inter-regional traffic.
The incident began when a Ministry of State Security vehicle without disinfecting gear pulled up at the checkpoint.
North Korean authorities recently placed the quarantine stations that were alongside the Ministry of State Security’s checkpoints between county, city, and provincial borders under the direct authority of the Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters.
Private buses and private taxis — so called “servi-cha” — can pass through the checkpoints only if they carry somebody to handle quarantine duties and have sprayers, disinfectants, and other disease-control gear.
If they do not, they face punishment for violating quarantine laws. Essentially, the authority of quarantine inspectors has been greatly strengthened.
The authorities are also having the Ministry of State Security’s No. 10 checkpoints and the quarantine checkpoints watch one another to ensure that vehicles cannot bribe their way through.
In this case, the vehicle in question had a driver and a civilian woman as a passenger. Their destination was Pyongyang.
However, why they were traveling from Yanggang Province to Pyongyang is not clear.
Even though the vehicle’s occupants had quarantine certificates and travel papers, they were not allowed to pass through the quarantine checkpoint because they did not have emergency masks, disinfectant, and other gear.
However, a fight began when Ministry of State Security agents at the No. 10 checkpoint argued that the vehicle could pass since it was cleared by superiors.
The armed Ministry of State Security agents pointed their guns at the quarantine inspectors. In the end, they beat the quarantine inspectors with the butts of their guns, the victims collapsing in a bloody heap. They were immediately taken to the hospital, though their injuries are not life-threatening.
The incident was immediately reported to both the provincial branches of the Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters and Ministry of State Security, as well as the headquarters of the two agencies in Pyongyang.
North Korea declared a period of heightened patrols nationwide from last Monday, two days ahead of the holiday marking late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s birthday, going on higher alert to prevent even the smallest of incidents.
Because of this, the Yanggang Province branch of the Ministry of State Security rushed to resolve the matter, but with Pyongyang already involved, the physical altercation could blow up into a serious incident.
The source said the hospitalized quarantine workers say they will file complaints against the Ministry of State Security sentries to Pyongyang. He said while there has been an ongoing war of nerves between quarantine checkpoints and Ministry of State Security checkpoints, the latest incident will not be easy to resolve since it grew violent.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
Seulkee Jang is one of Daily NK’s full-time journalists. Please direct any questions about her articles to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
7. Lecture held for North Korea officials in China hints at expansion of China-North Korea trade
We continue to hear rumors of expansion of trade, but will it happen?
But note the crackdown on blackmarket activity/smuggling.
Lecture held for North Korea officials in China hints at expansion of China-North Korea trade
The lecture condemned unofficial trade, warning that officials who take part in smuggling or other illegal activity “would lose everything right away"
The Sino-North Korean Friendship Bridge, which connects the Chinese city of Dandong with the North Korean city of Sinuiju. (Image: Daily NK)
North Korean authorities have recently carried out an “ideological lecture” related to trade for officials based in China. The lecture apparently underscored that the authorities would tolerate no smuggling, but left officials who attended anticipating that China-North Korea trade will soon expand.
According to a Daily NK source in China on Friday, North Korean authorities gathered North Korean trade representative cadres for a general review in the Chinese city of Dandong earlier this month. Cadres from Shenyang attended, too.
During the review, the authorities condemned unofficial trade without official sanction in harsh language, warning that officials who take part in smuggling or other illegal activity “would lose everything right away.”
Basically, they threatened that the authorities would not tolerate — under any circumstances — importing into North Korea unapproved items or mixing undeclared items with officially approved items, as was past practice.
In particular, North Korean authorities reportedly generated a climate of tension in the room as they listed examples of people executed for smuggling last year.
The source said the authorities provided a detailed account of a woman who was shot after she was caught smuggling in Nampo. He said the room was terrified as the speakers recalled how she was executed by anti-aircraft gun, obliterating her body.
The authorities also used the review to convey an order regarding the clothing of officials in China.
The lecturer ordered officials from wearing leather clothing, saying that if ordinary people wear the same leather apparel worn by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, it harms Kim’s majesty and dignity.
In fact, even before Kim started wearing leather, North Korean officials in Northeastern China wore leather jackets as a basic winter garment. Now they cannot – even in China.
Meanwhile, after the review, North Korean officials in China are saying unofficial trade led by the state will soon expand.
They believe the North Korean authorities have plans to expand unofficial state-led trade, which is why the lecture emphasizing the eradication of smuggling was held.
In fact, according to the source, the lecturer said not much time remains before trade is opened up.
North Korean authorities have restarted freight train service between China and North Korea, but the lecturer’s comment suggests trade could expand even further.
More specifically, North Korean authorities are reportedly moving towards full-scale exports to China of minerals currently restricted under UN sanctions.
Even until recently, North Korea had been exporting coal and minerals such as zinc and magnesia clinker via transshipments on the high seas, but this means the country has plans to expand exports.
The source said it appears North Korea will export high-value minerals to China soon. He said because of this, Chinese traders are regularly contacting North Korea.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
Seulkee Jang is one of Daily NK’s full-time journalists. Please direct any questions about her articles to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
8. Kim Jong Un gifts fighter pilots with longcoats to mark founding anniversary of N. Korea’s military
The converted long coat only to fighter pilots and other pilots are treated as lower class.
Excerpts:
It is highly significant that fighter pilots were gifted with longcoats, given that the attire has come to represent “closeness” to the seat of power in North Korea. Indeed, the country seems to be raising the political prestige of pilots in an attempt to strengthen the weak combat capability of the air force.
According to the source, there was much controversy around “discriminatory gifting” because the list of gift recipients excluded pilots of helicopters and transport aircraft.
Kim Jong Un gifts fighter pilots with longcoats to mark founding anniversary of N. Korea’s military
There was, however, controversy around “discriminatory gifting” because the list of gift recipients excluded pilots of helicopters, combat aircraft, and transport aircraft
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un gifted Air and Anti-Air Force fighter pilots with leather longcoats to mark the founding anniversary of the North Korean military on Feb. 8.
According to a Daily NK source in North Korea on Thursday, fighter pilots from Unit 1016 of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) were presented with leather longcoats in a ceremony on Feb. 5. Given the fact that Unit 1016 was the site of an on-the-spot visit by Kim, high-ranking cadres of the General Staff Department and the General Political Bureau also attended the ceremony.
At this ceremony, however, only fighter pilots with certain ranks were provided with longcoats, while commanders and ordinary co-pilots were not.
Longcoats became well-known in North Korea in January last year at the parade commemorating the Eighth Party Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea. At the time, Kim Jong Un, his sister Kim Yo Jong, Central Committee Secretary Jo Yong Won, and Party Vice Director Hyon Song Wol all appeared side-by-side wearing black longcoats.
This incident was so high-profile that it brought about the term “leather coat trio.” The longcoat attracted public attention once more when a photograph was published last month of North Korean Premier Kim Tok Hun wearing similar clothing during an on-the-spot inspection.
It is highly significant that fighter pilots were gifted with longcoats, given that the attire has come to represent “closeness” to the seat of power in North Korea. Indeed, the country seems to be raising the political prestige of pilots in an attempt to strengthen the weak combat capability of the air force.
According to the source, there was much controversy around “discriminatory gifting” because the list of gift recipients excluded pilots of helicopters and transport aircraft.
“They risk their lives during combat just like everyone else,” the source said, adding,“The pilots that were excluded from receiving leather longcoats as gifts are suffering from lowered morale.”
Meanwhile, on Mar. 9, 2015, Rodong Sinmun reported that leader Kim Jong Un inspected Unit 1016 of the KPA Air and Anti-Air Force honored with the title of O Jung Hup-led 7th Regiment.
At the time, Kim handed out cosmetics and food to the wives of pilots.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
9. South Korea's presidential election won't change its foreign policy
Excerpts:
Regardless of whether liberal Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) or conservative Yoon Suk-yeol of the People Power Party (PPP) wins the election, the broad strokes of South Korea’s foreign policy will not change. No matter who wins, Seoul will continue its commitment to the U.S. alliance, its cooperation with U.S.-led multilateralism, and cooperative relations with China — but also wariness toward the increasing aggressiveness of its neighbor.
This has been the policy of the Moon Jae-in government for at least two years, after it abandoned its purported balancing role between the U.S. and China. The joint statement by Presidents Biden and Moon after their June 2021 summit was fairly hawkish and, in fact, was praised by mainstream South Korean conservative thinkers.
South Korea's presidential election won't change its foreign policy
The Hill · by Ramon Pacheco Pardo and Saeme Kim · February 20, 2022
South Korea in March will hold a presidential election that some analysts hope will bring more clarity, and perhaps even change, to Seoul’s foreign policy posture, especially with regards to its position toward the growing U.S.-China rivalry. This will not happen.
Regardless of whether liberal Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) or conservative Yoon Suk-yeol of the People Power Party (PPP) wins the election, the broad strokes of South Korea’s foreign policy will not change. No matter who wins, Seoul will continue its commitment to the U.S. alliance, its cooperation with U.S.-led multilateralism, and cooperative relations with China — but also wariness toward the increasing aggressiveness of its neighbor.
This has been the policy of the Moon Jae-in government for at least two years, after it abandoned its purported balancing role between the U.S. and China. The joint statement by Presidents Biden and Moon after their June 2021 summit was fairly hawkish and, in fact, was praised by mainstream South Korean conservative thinkers.
Why will the next South Korean president side with the U.S. and keep a cautious distance from China? Above all, South Korea has problems of its own with its neighbor. The People’s Liberation Army routinely conducts naval exercises in the Yellow Sea that the Korean military sees as threatening; Chinese jets enter South Korea’s ADIZ several times a month; Chinese fishing vessels regularly enter South Korean waters; and China’s threats to freedom of navigation in the South China Sea pose a risk to South Korean exports to Europe and oil and gas imports from the Middle East.
Public opinion toward China is noticeably negative, with over 75 percent of South Koreans holding a negative view of China. Even among supporters of the DPK, who are traditionally less anti-China, favorability towards Beijing was only slightly higher than that shown by supporters of the PPP. While Lee has suggested that he may implement a policy of strategic ambiguity between the U.S. and China, without some calibration he undoubtedly will rack up public disapproval given the increasing anti-China sentiment among the Korean public.
Both candidates have iterated the importance of the Republic of Korea’s alliance with the United States. Yoon’s message has been clear: The alliance is more important than ever, not only for South Korea’s national security but also to address a diverse set of issues, including supply chains and global health. But Lee also has commented on his desire to develop the alliance into a global partnership.
In fact, Moon’s efforts towards the latter half of his presidency have raised the prospects for upgrading the alliance. Specifically, South Korea’s participation in the G7 summit last June, the Summit for Democracy, Quad Plus initiatives, and U.S.-led tech alliances, including on semiconductors, provides fertile ground to deepen the alliance and broaden South Korea’s own footprint on the international stage. No matter who replaces Moon as the next South Korean president, he is likely to build on the path that Moon set.
South Korea has shared values with the U.S. and other democracies. Simply put, it is unthinkable that any South Korean president would ditch the U.S. for China — or even treat both of them as similarly important for South Korea. Values influence foreign policy, and South Korea is no exception in that regard.
In addition, the main foreign policy advisers of the two leading presidential candidates hold mainstream views about South Korea’s foreign policy and its place in the world. As it concerns the U.S. alliance, neither is particularly liberal or conservative. Importantly, both have a strong public record of supporting the U.S. alliance.
For example, Wi Sung-lac, foreign policy adviser to Lee Jae-myung, is optimistic about the trajectory of the alliance, arguing that, while there are no major problems in the ROK-U.S. relationship, the full potential has yet to be reached and it will be up to the next administration to unlock it. Wi’s pragmatism was also evident in his desire to develop U.S.-ROK-Japan trilateralism to address the North Korean nuclear issue, as well as his suggestion that Lee sees potential opportunities for cooperation with the Quad.
Similarly, Kim Sung-han, foreign policy adviser to Yoon Suk-yeol, envisions a broadening of the alliance, stating that bilateral relations should go beyond a military alliance to include non-traditional issues. Kim has emphasized that Yoon would strengthen bilateral consultation mechanisms for closer cooperation on extended deterrence, while promoting predictability over strategic ambiguity.
And they have the ear of the respective candidate they serve, since neither Lee, former governor of Gyeonggi Province, nor Yoon, former prosecutor general, has much foreign policy experience.
Some may believe that Lee will weaken the U.S. alliance to improve relations with China, in the hope that this will support inter-Korean reconciliation. This is simplistic and ignores the fact that liberal administrations traditionally have increased military spending even while supporting dialogue with North Korea.
Similarly, some may believe that Yoon will overhaul Moon’s foreign policy. And indeed, he may become more vocal about China’s human rights abuses, perhaps even formally join the Quad, or shun dialogue with North Korea. But he is not going to risk a return to the THAAD dispute or the 2010 military clashes with Pyongyang.
Thus, on March 10, U.S. policymakers and analysts will wake to the face of a soon-to-be new South Korean president — but also to a familiar South Korean foreign policy that they should welcome.
Ramon Pacheco Pardo (@rpachecopardo) is head of department and professor of international relations, Department of European & International Studies, King’s College, London, and regional envoy for East and Southeast Asia at King’s College. He is also the KF-VUB Korea Chair, Brussels School of Governance, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and an adjunct nonresident fellow, Korea Chair, at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Saeme Kim (@SaemeK) is a KF Indo-Pacific Programme Visiting Fellow at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). Her research interests include the international relations of East Asia, particularly concerning regionalism, North Korea and middle power diplomacy. Prior to joining RUSI, Saeme was a resident fellow at Pacific Forum International and a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU) in South Korea.
The Hill · by Ramon Pacheco Pardo and Saeme Kim · February 20, 2022
V/R
David Maxwell
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Phone: 202-573-8647
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.
