| Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shakes hands with U.S. President Joe Biden after a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House, Washington, D.C., Wednesday (local time). AP-Yonhap |
Seoul indirectly supports Washington's efforts to contain Beijing
By Lee Hyo-jin
A new agreement between Seoul and Washington to deploy U.S. nuclear-armed submarines to South Korea is a worrisome development for China, according to analysts, who see the agreement as an indication of South Korea's indirect support for America's strategy to contain China.
Under the new Washington Declaration signed by President Yoon and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden on Wednesday (local time), the U.S. pledged stronger extended deterrence to protect its ally from North Korea's intensifying nuclear threats.
Through this declaration, the U.S. is poised to send a ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) capable of launching nuclear weapons to Korean waters, for the first time in 40 years, reflecting its effort to further enhance the regular visibility of its strategic assets on the Korean Peninsula.
On the following day, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that an Ohio-class SSBN, which carries up to 20 ballistic missiles with a range of 7,000 kilometers, will be deployed to the Korean Peninsula in accordance with the declaration.
Even though such a move is clearly directed at North Korea, it also has implications for China, according to Ramon Pacheco Pardo, international relations professor at King's College London.
“South Korea being able to consult with the U.S. on its nuclear policy towards Northeast Asia and the more regular deployment of strategic assets indirectly support American efforts to contain China,” he said, adding that China would be worried about the new agreement between Seoul and Washington.
Nevertheless, Pacheco Pardo considers that the joint declaration itself will not immediately worsen ties between Seoul and Beijing. China's concern is more about South Korea's increasingly vocal foreign and security policy, as well as South Korea, getting closer to the U.S., Japan, Australia or Europe, rather than the declaration itself, he said.
The professor added, “Beijing's concerns and criticism go well beyond the new nuclear agreement between Seoul and Washington.”
Yun Sun, a senior fellow and co-director of the East Asia Program and director of the China Program at the Stimson Center, echoed the sentiment, saying, “Extended deterrence will have its impact on China, and China will not respond positively.”
| Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning listens to a question during a daily briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office in Beijing, April 6. AP-Yonhap |
She commented that the state visit of Yoon to the U.S. has not brought much good news for the relations between Seoul and Beijing and Chinese policymakers interpret this as a clear indication that South Korea has abandoned its balanced diplomacy and is increasingly aligning with Washington.
“We have seen Chinese economic sanctions on South Korea before. I would not rule that out at this point,” Yun warned.
In addition, Beijing has reacted furiously to Yoon and Biden's joint statement touching on the Taiwan Strait issue.
In the joint statement issued after the summit, the two leaders reiterated the importance of preserving peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable element of security and prosperity in the region.
They also expressed strong opposition against any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific, including through unlawful maritime claims, the militarization of reclaimed features and coercive activities.
In a press briefing held on Thursday, China's foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning urged Seoul and Washington to be more cautious in words and actions on the Taiwan issue and respect its “One China” principle. Later in the day, a senior ministry official met with South Korean Embassy Minister Kang Sang-wook to lodge a strong protest on the matter.
However, Pacheco Pardo saw that the situation is unlikely to develop into a major diplomatic row between Seoul and Beijing.
Noting the section about Taiwan having already been included in joint statements between former liberal President Moon Jae-in and Biden, he said, “I would expect China to be critical of the joint statement, both in public and in private. But ultimately, the statement reflects a position that the Yoon government has already made clear before. So I don't think that the statement itself will impact South Korea-China relations.”