Korea-China 'Head-on Clash'... "Time to Employ De-risking Strategy"

Chinese Ambassador's 'Betting' Remark Causes Rift in Korea-China Relations
"Uphold Principles but Reduce Risks to Serve National Interest"
Some Say "China Must Correct Its High-Handed Attitude and Move Forward"

The relationship between South Korea and China has reached a crossroads. Following the clash between South Korean and Chinese diplomatic authorities in April over President Yoon Suk-yeol's remarks on the Taiwan Strait, tensions have escalated again due to the inappropriate remarks made by Xing Haiming, the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea. Experts are increasingly recommending a shift in South Korea's China strategy toward "de-risking"?reducing risk factors first while clearly upholding the principle of "mutual respect" in response to the Chinese government's high-handed attitude.

According to diplomatic sources on the 12th, Ambassador Xing Haiming criticized during a dinner with Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, on the 8th, saying, "Some are betting that the United States will win and China will lose, but they will surely regret it later." This remark targeted the Yoon administration's diplomatic strategy of closely aligning with the United States and was widely criticized as inappropriate, potentially seen as interference in internal affairs beyond mere containment. The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Ambassador Xing on the 9th, and the Chinese government responded by calling in Jeong Jae-ho, South Korea's ambassador to China, the day before.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, visited Xing Haiming, the Chinese Ambassador to Korea, at the Chinese Ambassador's residence in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, on the evening of the 8th and toured the residence. Photo by National Assembly Press Corps

The reciprocal summoning of ambassadors between the two countries has repeated within just two months. In April, President Yoon stated in an interview with Reuters regarding the Taiwan Strait, "We oppose any change of the status quo by force," to which Wang Wenbin, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, immediately retorted, "We do not tolerate interference from others." Soon after, Qin Gang, Chinese Foreign Minister, reacted strongly, saying, "Those who play with fire on the Taiwan issue will perish in flames." While there was consensus that China's diplomatic conduct was rude, some pointed out that President Yoon's remarks, which revealed "strategic clarity," carried significant risks.

In diplomatic circles, concerns are rising that the renewed clashes between South Korea and China may deteriorate the bilateral relationship, which had been on a path to improvement. A government official said, "Our government is strongly committed to improving Korea-China relations, and the United States also feels burdened by the new Cold War dynamics. Since the current administration places emphasis on security, it aimed to first strengthen Korea-US and Korea-Japan relations before addressing Korea-China relations on its own timeline, but the repeated conflicts are causing some embarrassment."

President Yoon Suk-yeol shaking hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Facing an economic downturn, South Korea has high expectations for China's reopening, so there are concerns that a security-focused diplomatic strategy could negatively impact economic and trade sectors. Notably, China's economic retaliation following the deployment of THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) in 2016 remains ongoing. For example, losses such as Lotte Group's complete withdrawal from the Chinese market have yet to be recovered, and further damage could be exacerbated.

Moreover, the Biden administration in the United States, which is engaged in a hegemonic competition with China, has recently maintained high-level communication while responding positively to China's reopening. It is adopting a "two-track" approach in military/diplomatic and economic/trade fields, implementing a "de-risking" strategy to reduce risk factors between the two countries. This concept contrasts with "decoupling," which excludes China.

Joo Jae-woo, director of the China Research Center at the Korea Institute for National Strategy, evaluated that the "time for transition" has arrived. He said, "High-level communication between the US and China is ongoing, and American companies including Tesla are striving to enter the Chinese market. This means the international landscape has changed. The US policy is to manage the crisis through cooperation in non-military fields with lower risks." He added, "We also need to respond only within principled boundaries without unnecessarily provoking China. Separating security and economy to reduce risk factors aligns with our national interests at this point."

"Speak up when necessary"... Manage the crisis but keep principles clear

(From left) Joo Jae-woo, Director of China Research Center at Korea National Strategy Institute; Park Won-gon, Professor of North Korean Studies at Ewha Womans University; Kang Jun-young, Professor at Graduate School of International and Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies

There are also opinions that a clear stance is necessary toward the Chinese government, which has shown a high-handed attitude toward the South Korean government while claiming to be a "great power." Park Won-gon, professor of North Korean Studies at Ewha Womans University, said, "The Yoon administration's clear diplomatic policy is to strengthen the Korea-US alliance while also aiming for friendly relations with China. However, from China's perspective, since the South Korean government previously did not raise issues despite pressure, but now pursues a China strategy based on 'mutual respect and reciprocity,' unprecedented friction has emerged."

Professor Park viewed the recent clash as not necessarily an excessive "deterioration of relations." He said, "Since China's direct measures have not gone beyond the low-level response of summoning, it is not advisable to escalate this into the worst-case scenario. It is important to consistently pursue a strategy of equal bilateral relations while managing the crisis." He further emphasized, "It is necessary to correct and move past China's wrongful diplomatic practices, which have exercised unchecked attitudes toward our government."

There is also advice to use the discord between South Korea and China as an opportunity for high-level communication. Professor Kang Jun-young of the Graduate School of International and Area Studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies pointed out that South Korea is the only country among those that have issued Indo-Pacific strategy reports to designate China as a "major cooperation partner," saying, "We need to make China understand that our will to improve Korea-China relations, especially the Korea-US and Korea-US-Japan cooperation, is not aimed at containing China but is an unavoidable choice due to the North Korean nuclear issue." He added, "Considering high-level dialogue channels for deep exchanges of views and a 1.5-track dialogue system..."

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