hankyoreh

Park Chan-su

The summit between the leaders of the US and South Korea that took place at the White House on Mar. 7, 2001, is considered one of the worst diplomatic failures by South Korea.

During the meeting, then South Korean President Kim Dae-jung sought to gain definite support from newly inaugurated US President George W. Bush for the Sunshine Policy.

But in contrast with the joint statement, which contained a strong pledge for cooperation on North Korea, the difference of opinion between the two leaders came to the surface during the press conference. Kim’s face whitened and his jaw clenched.

The situation was similar during the summit between South Korean President Park Geun-hye and US President Barack Obama on Oct. 18, 2015. In contrast with boasting about how the two countries had released the first joint statement aimed entirely at North Korea, US concerns that South Korea is shifting toward China were openly expressed during the press conference. The difference from 14 years ago was that Park kept smiling.

As is well known, the key of this press conference was President Obama’s remark about China. “We want South Korea to have a strong relationship with China,” Obama said. “The only thing that we‘re going to continue to insist on is that we want China to abide by international norms and rules. And where they fail to do so, we expect the Republic of Korea to speak out on that, just as we do.”

The remark appeared at the very end of the press conference, which lasted for 53 minutes. Obama let his true colors show during the question and answer session.

But really, the highlight of the press conference came somewhat earlier. Before Obama made this remark, an American reporter asked Park what message she was trying to send to the US when she appeared in Beijing at the military review with the leaders of Russia and China. “I met with President Xi in China, and I also met with the leaders of Russia. The North Korean nuclear issue in our region, in Northeast Asia and even the world, it’s a very large threat. This is something that we need to make concerted efforts to resolve. [. . .] And they agreed with me,” Park said. Her response was a complete non sequitur.

The reporter’s question and Obama’s remark are fundamentally the same. They both reflect the concern underlying the US‘s understanding of South Korea’s relationship with China. To be sure, Park may have responded as she did because she failed to understand the question, which was asked in English.

However, the question of how the US should regard Park‘s attendance at China’s military review is a very sensitive one. The number one item of interest in Washington during this summit and the press conference was in fact not North Korea but China. Given that, Park ought to have responded naturally when she was asked that question, as if she had been expecting it.

But Park’s attitude that day was different. It seems not only that she had failed to prepare for this question but that she did not even properly understand its significance.

People watching the press conference no doubt came away with some fundamental doubts about whether Park has a proper understanding of the current situation on the Korean Peninsula. Most likely, Park bought into the reassuring claims of diplomatic advisors who said that the US adequately understands the relationship between South Korea and China and that there are no problems, with the result that she was taken by surprise during the press conference. That is what happened to Kim in 2001.

The alliance between South Korea and the US is not some kind of moral good. The South Korean government does not have to bend over backward for every American complaint. That said, its understanding of the situation, at least, should be rational and accurate. That is the only way it can protect the country’s interests and act wisely in the struggle between great powers.

The current administration is failing on that basic level. President Park is mesmerized by comforting remarks by people like Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, who said that “it’s a blessing that South Korea is being courted by both the US and China.” The more worrying thing is the fact that President Park cannot even recognize that her diplomatic failure is a failure.

Immediately after completing the summit in Mar. 2001 and returning to South Korea, President Kim sacked Foreign Minister Lee Jeong-bin. Kim held Lee responsible for failing to accurately detect the mood in the US and to report it to him.

But Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is still going strong. One problem is the foreign minister, but another is the president who fails to recognize that things are going wrong. With this kind of captain and first mate behind the wheel, the ship of state is headed for the choppy waters of East Asia.

By Park Chan-su, editorial writer

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