President Moon Wants to Talk About Semiconductors and Vaccines... But the U.S. Tries to Bring Up China Issues First

White House Identifies China and North Korea as Key Issues for South Korea-US Summit... Cheong Weighs Diplomatic and Economic Impact in Adjusting Tone

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min] On the 21st (local time), ahead of the South Korea-US summit, the White House identified North Korea and China as key agenda items, increasing the Blue House's concerns.

Even if the US, aiming to check China's expansion, demands a strong message, the Blue House cannot help but moderate the tone considering diplomatic and economic repercussions. If gaps between South Korea and the US are exposed in this process, the Blue House's plan to resolve Korean Peninsula issues based on a solid South Korea-US alliance could be shaken.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said at a briefing on the 20th, "We expect North Korea to be a central topic of discussion tomorrow (at the South Korea-US summit)," adding, "We will also discuss China." The agenda surrounding North Korea and China is a sensitive issue. To bring North Korea to the dialogue table, China's cooperation is essential, but if the joint press statement of the South Korea-US summit contains content that provokes China, the political burden could increase.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In this regard, foreign media, citing sources, reported that the White House is trying to persuade President Moon to agree to strong expressions of concern about China in the joint statement of this summit.

This means that, as part of allied cooperation against China, they hope President Moon will support including strong language about China in the joint statement. Regarding this, it is known that no mention of China was included in the meeting held on the afternoon of the 20th between President Moon and US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other House leadership.

However, it is reported that the possibility of President Biden requesting President Moon to participate in the Indo-Pacific four-country consultative group 'Quad' (United States, Japan, Australia, India), known for its 'China containment' nature, is low. Press Secretary Psaki said, "The Quad has four member countries, and while we don't want to be too mathematical about it, that (the four members) already exists."

She went on to emphasize that South Korea is "a very important partner to the United States." She also added that there are various forms of international cooperation for the US. Psaki said, "There is nothing to predict or expect regarding changes in Quad membership."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, the South Korea-US summit is expected to discuss a wide range of issues, focusing on diplomacy and security areas such as North Korea and China, as well as climate and economy. In the economic field, technology cooperation areas such as semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries are key interests. Vaccine cooperation issues are also expected to be on the discussion table.

Psaki said, "We welcome the opportunity to discuss vaccine cooperation with South Korea," adding, "We expect to discuss not only how the US can support South Korea in the fight against COVID-19 but also how we can work together to fight the global pandemic."

At the South Korea-US summit, measures to strengthen vaccine cooperation between the two countries, such as resolving vaccine supply issues through 'vaccine swaps' and domestic vaccine production through technology transfer, are expected to be broadly discussed.

However, she was reserved about the US's overseas vaccine supply issues. Psaki said, "It will be distributed fairly and equitably." She added, "We will look at how to provide support fairly, ensure it reaches the areas most in need, and achieve fairness and regional balance."

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