[EAI Column] For a Successful ROK-U.S. Summit

Author

Lee Sook-Jong, President of EAI and Professor at the Graduate School of Governance, Sungkyunkwan University. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from Harvard University. She currently serves as a member of the Presidential National Security Advisory Council, and advisory committees for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Unification, and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). She is also a member of The Trilateral Commission and the Council of Councils (CoC), actively working to build international networks for policy research. She previously served as a Research Fellow at the Sejong Institute, a Visiting Fellow at the Northeast Asia Program of the Brookings Institution, a Visiting Lecturer at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and a Visiting Professor at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies. Her recent publications include “South Korea as New Middle Power Seeking Complex Diplomacy,” Public Diplomacy and Soft Power in East Asia(co-edited), “Global Development Cooperation Governance and Korea” (edited), and “The Demise of ‘Korea Inc.’: Paradigm Shift in Korea’s Developmental State.”

With President Park Geun-hye's visit to the U.S. scheduled for June 16, both South Korea and the United States are busy coordinating the agenda. More important than diplomatic speeches, such as the one delivered to a joint session of the U.S. Congress in May 2013, are the working-level discussions between the two leaders. This is an opportunity for candid exchange of views and strengthening of cooperative resolve, especially since it is the fourth summit between President Park and President Obama, and the two leaders appear to share a strong bond of trust. The Blue House should focus on substantive achievements rather than being swayed by some public opinion that seeks to compare this summit with Prime Minister Abe's visit to the U.S. or the upcoming visit by President Xi Jinping.

The most critical agenda item is the escalating threat posed by North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile programs. While the Obama administration has consistently maintained a stance of actively responding to any North Korean threat through the robust ROK-U.S. alliance, the growing number of nuclear weapons, miniaturization of warheads, lengthening ballistic missile trajectories, and the development of submarine-launched ballistic missiles leave South Koreans deeply uneasy. After five years of the U.S. government's 'strategic patience,' waiting for North Korea to genuinely engage in nuclear negotiations, South Koreans' patience is wearing thin. Patience without both carrots and sticks amounts to indifference, and in the interim, North Korea's negotiating position has only strengthened. In this summit, President Park Geun-hye must strongly urge President Obama to personally focus on the North Korean nuclear issue, just as he has on the Iran nuclear deal, and concentrate his leadership on it. Just as Iran's possession of nuclear weapons is dangerous in the volatile Middle East, North Korea's nuclear program is equally perilous because its existing arsenal of at least 6-8 nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of the adventurous and unstable Kim Jong-un.

South Korea has much to say regarding the regional dynamics in Northeast Asia, but wisdom is needed in how to convey it. South Korea finds itself in a position where it must strengthen the ROK-U.S. alliance, which is the cornerstone of its national security, while also deepening economic and political cooperation with China. While leaders in the U.S. political establishment understand this position, some suspect that South Korea is playing both sides between the U.S. and China, or even deceiving the U.S. This suspicion is partly due to the South Korean government's prolonged ambiguous stance or lack of sufficient consultation on key issues such as the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THADD) system, known as theTHAAD, for U.S. Forces Korea, and South Korea's potential accession to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). During this visit to Washington, our President must dispel these misunderstandings by reaffirming the importance of the ROK-U.S. alliance. Only when the U.S., our long-standing ally, fully trusts South Korea can our efforts to develop relations with China proceed smoothly. The simplistic logic of 'security with the U.S., economy with China' is not a sound solution for complex diplomatic issues and is insufficient to guarantee sustained U.S. trust in South Korea.

Regarding the deterioration of ROK-Japan relations, which is a concern for the United States, relations are improving, starting with the resumption of high-level talks between South Korea and Japan. It is crucial to demonstrate that South Korea's policy toward Japan is not solely fixated on historical issues. Many U.S. leaders, including President Obama, side with the South Korean people on unresolved colonial-era grievances such as the comfort women issue, yet they also advocate for expanded military cooperation with Japan. In this context, persistently raising issues with the Abe administration's actions, however truthful, may prove counterproductive. In her speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) scheduled for the 16th, President Park Geun-hye needs to articulate the importance of ROK-Japan relations within a future-oriented vision befitting the 70th anniversary of liberation, moving beyond the Abe administration. A message emphasizing that both South Korea and Japan must jointly open the path to future Asian peace and common prosperity with a spirit of forgiveness and reconciliation, rather than merely demanding sincere apologies and compensation as victims of a painful history, could resonate in Washington. It would be desirable for this future-oriented, constructive message to continue after our President's return home and positively influence Abe's statement on Japan's World War II anniversary. Without resolving the conflicts in ROK-Japan relations, not only will substantive cooperation in the ROK-U.S.-Japan trilateral relationship face obstacles, but the Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative, promoted by the current administration as a regional vision, will also fail to gain traction.

The ROK-U.S. alliance is evolving beyond bilateral cooperation towards a global partnership. Through overseas volunteer programs, disease prevention, disaster relief, and peacekeeping operations, South Koreans and Americans, based on their shared courageous and enterprising national character, are stepping forward together for the well-being of the global community. Despite the challenging North Korean nuclear issue looming before us, given the historical development of the ROK-U.S. alliance, our President's steps toward the upcoming U.S. summit should be firm and confident. ■

[EAI Column] presents productive and constructive opinions and policy proposals from experts on key issues such as South Korean society and politics, and East Asian security and diplomacy. Please cite the source when quoting.

EAI is an independent research institution independent of any partisan interests. The claims and opinions expressed in reports, journals, and books published by EAI are not affiliated with EAI and solely represent the views of the individual author.