October US-China 'Korean Peninsula Diplomatic Battle'... US Pompeo and China Wang Yi's Consecutive Visits to Korea

Pompeo to Visit Korea Around October 7-8 After Chuseok, Wang Yi Also Planning Mid-October Visit
US Requests South Korea's Participation in 'Anti-China Bloc' in Economy and Security; China Expresses Position on US-China Conflict and Checks US
South Korea Likely to Focus on Multilateralism and Resuming North Korea Dialogue Discussions

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] A diplomatic battle between the United States and China is intensifying over South Korea. As the U.S. increasingly makes overt economic and security cooperation requests targeting China, China is also stepping up face-to-face diplomacy with South Korea.

According to diplomatic sources, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit South Korea immediately after the Chuseok holiday in October. Pompeo is scheduled to visit for a 1-night, 2-day trip on October 7-8, during which he will hold a foreign ministers' meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and is expected to pay a courtesy call on President Moon Jae-in. This will be Pompeo’s first visit to South Korea in about two years since October 2018.

At the same time, Wang Yi, China’s State Councilor and Foreign Minister, is coordinating the timing and format of his visit with the South Korean side. It is widely expected that he will visit South Korea in mid-October, shortly after Pompeo’s visit. This follows Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party responsible for foreign affairs, who visited South Korea in August. The consecutive visits of high-ranking Chinese officials are considered unusual. Wang Yi’s visit will be his first in about 10 months since December last year.

Amid escalating U.S.-China tensions, the visits of Secretary Pompeo and Foreign Minister Wang Yi to South Korea are of utmost interest. Their visits are expected to coincide with the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting, an Asia-Pacific security consultative forum, and a courtesy call on newly appointed Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. Given the extremely limited face-to-face diplomacy due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the consecutive visits of these two G2 high-ranking officials are particularly notable.

Through this visit, Secretary Pompeo is likely to push for the establishment of an ‘anti-China bloc’ in economic and security fields and to request South Korea’s participation once again. As the U.S. presidential election is just over a month away, the level of these requests may be higher than before. Earlier, on September 27-28, U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Arms Control Marshall Billingslea visited South Korea and shared information on China’s missiles and nuclear capabilities, indirectly conveying the request for South Korea’s participation. This has increased the pressure felt by the South Korean government.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Foreign Minister Wang Yi is also likely to convey China’s stance on the U.S.-China conflict as a reaffirmation of China-South Korea relations. Since Yang Jiechi, who visited South Korea in August, delivered similar views to Suh Hoon, Director of the National Security Office at the Blue House, Wang Yi is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and make similar remarks.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Wang Yi made sharp remarks targeting the U.S., which has been pressuring China daily, stating that a great power should not deprive other countries of their right to development. These remarks came amid the U.S. raising the issue of China’s responsibility for the spread of COVID-19 and imposing extensive pressure on Chinese technology companies.

In a recent speech at the opening ceremony of the forum on ‘International Order and Global Governance in the Post-COVID-19 Era,’ Wang Yi said, “A great power responsible for peace and development should not sacrifice the safety of other countries to ensure its own safety,” and “It should not deprive other countries of their right to development through hegemony.” He emphasized opposing the wrong notion of putting one’s own country first and zero-sum games, urging “all countries not to be complacent and to avoid making wrong choices.”

South Korea is expected to continue its delicate balancing diplomacy, spearheading the Korean Peninsula peace process, including the recently actively discussed ‘Declaration of the End of War.’ The government maintains its stance that “the U.S. is South Korea’s ally, and China is an important economic partner.” Accordingly, it is likely to avoid direct comments on the U.S.-China conflict, continuously emphasize ‘restoring multilateralism’ to countries other than the G2, and focus on drawing cooperation from both the U.S. and China by sending ongoing messages to resume dialogue with North Korea regarding the Korean Peninsula issue.

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha is having a brief conversation after a commemorative photo session with Wang Yi, State Councilor and Foreign Minister of China, before their meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building on Sejong-daero, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 4th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.