Korea - Japan - China cooperation towards the future

According to Xinhua News Agency, the summit between South Korea, Japan and China, which opened on May 27 in Seoul, South Korea, is expected to be an opportunity to bring trilateral cooperation, which has been stalled for more than four years, back on track.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio (from right). Photo: Kyodo

Stress Relief

South Korean Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo said that President Yoon Suk-yeol, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio will focus on six areas of discussion, including economic and trade cooperation, sustainable development, health issues, science and technology, safety and disaster management, and people-to-people exchanges, and will issue a joint statement. In addition, the leaders will discuss international and regional issues, as well as meet businesspeople and attend a business forum. Bilateral meetings between South Korea and China and South Korea and Japan will be held before the trilateral meeting on May 26.

The conference took place in the context of increasing strategic competition between the US and China. South Korea’s move to move closer to the US and strengthen the trilateral alliance between the US, South Korea and Japan has inadvertently given rise to the shape of a “new Cold War” model with Russia, China and North Korea on the other side. Therefore, reconnecting cooperation with China is considered the missing link to expand diplomatic space for South Korea.

Previously, in resolving the tense relationship with neighboring Japan, South Korea clearly showed its stance of putting aside differences and focusing on cooperation, similar to the shuttle diplomacy efforts to break the ice with Japan in 2023. With many differences and outstanding issues after many years of stagnant relations, the agreement of South Korea, China and Japan to resume the summit is considered a positive signal showing the will to cooperate towards the future.

Park In-hwi, an international politics expert at Ewha Womans University, said that with the Korea-US alliance and Korea-US-Japan relations progressing well, the last missing axis for Korea is China, and this summit could be an opportunity for Seoul to create a foundation to perfect its diplomatic strategy among the major powers. The resumption of the trilateral summit after a long hiatus is of great significance. This is because the three countries share a long history and are neighbors with many interdependent links, especially in the economic field. In addition, cooperation among the three countries is necessary to cope with increasingly frequent climate and environmental disasters.

Great meaning

However, Korean analysts believe that the outcome of this meeting is not high. Kang Joon-young, a professor of regional and international studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, said that it is difficult to immediately achieve substantive results, but just holding the meeting is meaningful because it revives a foundation for dialogue instead of confrontation. At the very least, the meeting will push the wheel of trilateral cooperation to turn, instead of standing still.

According to Nam Sung-wook, a professor of international politics at Korea University, China is likely to try to resolve issues such as the semiconductor supply chain that is entangled with the South Korea-US alliance, while South Korea wants to focus on pragmatic diplomacy to restore economic exchanges with China. The government of President Yoon Suk-yeol should take advantage of the opportunity at this conference to mend the relationship with China that has deteriorated since the two countries established diplomatic relations.

THANH HANG synthesis

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/han-nhat-trung-hop-tac-huong-toi-tuong-lai-post741718.html