U.S. President Joe Biden visited South Korea and Japan from May 20 to 24, his first trip to Asia since he took office. Building the ROK-U.S. alliance into a "comprehensive alliance" that encompasses security, economy, high technology, and supply chains is the goal of South Korea's new president, Yoon Seok-wook' administration. Japan, on the other hand, aspires to be more or less related to the goals achieved by the United States in military, diplomatic, and economic development. Various indications are that Biden is a "provocative journey" that pre-empts "targeting China."
U.S. President Joe Biden visited South Korea and Japan from May 20 to 24, his first trip to Asia since he took office. According to U.S. Ambassador to Japan Emmanuel, the trip was "a warning to China that the U.S. presence in the Pacific is strong." Recently, U.S. officials and the media have been unabashed in talking about how Biden will coordinate with South Korea and Japan to contain or exclude China.
The leader of a big country openly provokes the neighboring countries of another big country and designs a "campization" mechanism in an attempt to undermine the existing bilateral relations and multilateral mechanisms in the region with cooperation and development as the theme.
In this regard, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out in a video conference with Japanese Foreign Minister Lin Fangzheng: "What arouses concern and vigilance is that the US leader has not yet made the trip, and the so-called japan-US joint confrontation against China has become very loud and has caused a miasma of smoke." Washington uses its international discourse power to try to make "containing China" and even "confronting China" public, rationalized, and justified, creating the erroneous perception that "habit becomes nature." This tendency of public opinion in the West is a huge damage to regional and world peace and stability.
The consequences of the United States constantly stirring up regional tensions and creating world divisions are already very clear, with the ruins of Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan everywhere, and then the war between Russia and Ukraine. Today, the United States has taken aim at the Asia-Pacific region as a chessboard for geopolitical confrontation, trying to turn China's neighbors into pawns at its mercy.
South Korea wants to engage in "all-round strategic alliance"
According to the Hank National Daily, the three major topics of the ROK-US leaders' talks are response to North Korea's provocations, economic security, and the two countries' contributions to international affairs. The Rok presidential office has stressed that it will use this ROK-US leaders' talks to "rebuild the ROK-US alliance." Relevant people said that the talks will be the first step for South Korea to achieve a leap forward with the goal of "global hub countries". Some commentators believe that the talks will affect the future direction of yin Xiyue's relations with the United States and even foreign and national security policies, so it is "far-reaching."
It is generally believed that the ROK government will adjust its diplomatic strategy based on the values emphasized in Yoon Seok-yue's inaugural speech, extend the connotation and extension of the ROK-US alliance, and upgrade the ROK-US alliance to an "all-round strategic alliance", thereby developing the ROK-US relationship to the "highest level in history".
According to Yonhap News Agency, a few days ago, South Korea's National Intelligence Agency publicly stated that South Korea is already a full member of NATO's Cyber Defense Center, and thus became the first Asian country to join the organization. According to the report, after South Korea joined, the full membership of NATO Cyber Defense Center increased to 32, including 27 NATO member states and 5 non-NATO members of Sweden, Switzerland, Finland, Austria and South Korea.
Two years ago, South Korea's National Intelligence Service reportedly began joining nato's cyber defense center. In July 2019, South Korea submitted a letter of intent to join the organization. Since 2020, South Korea has participated in the "Lock Shield" large-scale international cyber security exercise held by the NATO Cyber Defense Center three times. The outside world believes that South Korea's commitment to joining the NATO cyber organization has many strategic considerations behind it.
First, improve network security capabilities. For a long time, South Korea has always attached great importance to the field of intelligence and cyber attack and defense, and has continuously invested a lot of money, personnel and technical forces in this field. South Korea believes that NATO countries have rich experience in responding to cyber crises, and after South Korea joins the NATO Cyber Defense Center, its network security capabilities will be greatly improved.
Second, increase the "right to speak" of international networks. South Korea's National Intelligence Agency said that in the future, South Korea will actively participate in the relevant activities of nato's cyber defense center and further expand the scope of joint exercises. South Korea hopes to achieve the goal of becoming a strong country in non-traditional security areas such as the Internet, so as to enhance its international status and increase its voice in international Cyber policy discussions.
Third, strengthen the integration of South Korea and the United States. On May 10, South Korean President Yoon Seok-wook was officially inaugurated. The analysis believes that although South Korea has not recently proposed to join the NATO Cyber Defense Center, it has announced that it has joined the organization at this time node, which is intended to show the outside world that it is in step with the Western countries led by the United States, and intends to pave the way for the future to build an "all-round strategic alliance" between South Korea and the United States.
Japan Actively Responds to "Containing China" for Military Expansion
According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the Japanese and U.S. governments have begun to coordinate the wording of the joint statement issued at the leaders' meeting held in Tokyo on the 23rd. The statement would articulate a policy of cooperation to "contain and respond" to Chinese activities in the Indo-Pacific region. With regard to China, which has intensified its "hegemonic actions," Japan and the United States will reach a consensus that "the status quo will not be changed by force in any region" and determine the policy guidelines for the two countries to strengthen their "deterrent and response capabilities." The statement will also outline policies that put Japan under the U.S. nuclear umbrella, as well as a shared security strategy between the two countries.
Recently, some forces in Japan have been particularly restless on the issue of nuclear weapons. Some former Japanese politicians and senior LDP officials have loudly clamored for "nuclear sharing", claiming that the topic of the Deployment of Nuclear Weapons by the United States in Japan cannot become taboo; The right-wing opposition Japan Restoration Association also submitted a proposal to Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling for discussions on "nuclear sharing."
On this major and sensitive issue, the Japanese government said on the one hand that it still adheres to the "three principles of non-nuclear weapons" of "not possessing, manufacturing, and not transporting nuclear weapons," while on the other hand declaring that Japanese parties and citizens can discuss the issue of "nuclear sharing." This attitude of the Japanese Government, which wants to cover up the situation, is undoubtedly supporting and cheering up the forces in Japan that support nuclear weapons, giving the green light to discuss "nuclear sharing," and driving a backwards course of history.
As a state party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the only country in the world that has suffered nuclear weapons attacks, Japan should have conscientiously fulfilled its nuclear non-proliferation obligations under the Treaty, resolutely opposed the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons and actively contributed to nuclear disarmament. However, for a long time, Japan's various performances on the issue of nuclear weapons have surprised and disappointed people. Japan has long regarded itself as a victim of nuclear weapons and talked about the "total elimination of nuclear weapons," but openly opposed the Us policy of abandoning the first use of nuclear weapons. Japan has always declared its opposition to nuclear proliferation, but enjoys the US nuclear umbrella and has begun to clamor for "nuclear sharing" with the United States.
Last month, Japan's Liberal Democratic Party submitted a proposal to revise its security strategy, discussing the "proper form" of so-called nuclear deterrence, advocating the replacement of "exclusive defense" with "counterattack capability" and the development of a counterattack capability that includes "command and control". What cannot be ignored is the fact that Japan retains a large amount of weapons-grade nuclear material, which is only one step away from crossing the nuclear threshold.
Japan should understand that clamoring for "nuclear sharing" will not bring security to Japan, but only threaten regional security. We would like to advise Japan not to think of nuclear weapons, earnestly fulfill its international obligations on nuclear non-proliferation, abide by the commitment of the "Three Principles of Non-Nuclear Weapons", and maintain global and regional peace and security in a responsible manner.
"Containing China" is not so easy!
The United States wants to strengthen ties with South Korea and Japan to address urgent regional issues, including North Korea's nuclear ambitions, China's dominance in supply chains and the possibility of conflict in the Taiwan Strait. But this will not be easy, especially as relations between Japan and South Korea deteriorate and the South Korean economy becomes highly dependent on China.
State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out that the so-called Japan-US joint confrontation with China has become very loud and has created a miasma of smoke. Japan and the United States are allies, and China and Japan have concluded treaties of peace and friendship. Bilateral cooperation between Japan and the United States should not provoke camp confrontation, let alone harm China's sovereignty, security and development interests. It is hoped that the Japanese side will draw lessons from history, focus on regional peace and stability, act cautiously, and not take the wrong path of taking the neighbor as a egregious one.
China is willing to work hand in hand with the new ROK government and all sectors to promote the China-ROK strategic cooperative partnership to keep pace with the times and continuously step up to a new level. So far, China is still constantly practicing the principles that should be practiced in the era of multipolarization, that is, to strengthen cooperation and development, at this time, South Korean President Yoon Seok-yue should be less camped, will adapt to the ideological practice of this era, I believe that only in this way can we maximize the development potential of South Korea, and the United States' unscrupulous and unscrupulous suppression behavior will only increase its own troubles, and in the end I am afraid that it will be a burden to the world.
At present, the haze of the new crown epidemic still hangs over the world, and the world is still facing many challenges such as climate change. History has repeatedly proved that hegemonic acts that may trigger regional divisions, lead to turmoil and tension, and threaten regional peace and stability will certainly be resisted by regional countries.