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South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks with interim US President-elect Joe Biden on the phone at the Blue House on Nov. 12. (provided by the Blue House)

In their first phone call on Nov. 12, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and interim US President-elect Joe Biden shared their opinions about four topics; namely, the North Korean nuclear issue, the South Korea-US alliance, the COVID-19 response, and joint action on climate change. The Blue House reported that the two leaders had agreed to work together closely on resolving the North Korean nuclear issue.

Biden said the US would “continue to firmly maintain our defense commitment to South Korea and cooperate closely to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.”

It’s significant that the two leaders found consensus in their first phone call on key issues including the South Korea-US alliance and the North Korea nuclear issue. We hope this will provide an opportunity for resuming the Korean Peninsula peace process, which has been stalled since the North Korea-US summit in Hanoi in February 2019.

Notably, Biden visited the Korean War Memorial in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Veterans Day (Nov. 11) and laid several wreaths at the memorial there.

In phone calls the previous day with the leaders of European countries including the UK, Germany, and France, Biden also clarified his determination to repair global alliances damaged by Trump’s “America first” approach.

Trump, who thinks that South Korea gets a “free ride” for national security from the South Korea-US alliance, has pushed Seoul for an unreasonable hike in its financial contribution to the cost of stationing American troops in the country. Our hope is that South Korea’s relationship with the US will not be damaged in such a manner during Biden’s time in office.

In US-China relations, however, Biden isn’t expected to change the US’ current strategy of placing pressure on China. Biden told Moon that he regards South Korea as “the linchpin of security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.” Biden also brought up the issue of Indo-Pacific security in phone calls with the leaders of Japan and Australia.

The South Korean government needs to closely examine the Biden administration’s strategy toward China and carefully frame a response.

Going forward, the South Korean and American governments need to develop concrete approaches to major issues based on the consensus affirmed in the two leaders’ phone calls. We earnestly ask the Biden administration to recall that alliances are based in trust and that trust derives from mutual respect.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]