#MCN首发激励计划#
According to the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on May 13, Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with visiting South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Doi-yeol in Beijing. This is the first visit to China by a South Korean foreign minister in six and a half years, and it is also the first official visit to China by a high-level South Korean official after Yoon Suk-yeol took office, which is of great significance to China-South Korea relations.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Doi-yeol
During the face-to-face talks, Foreign Minister Wang Yi made it clear that China-ROK relations have been facing difficulties and challenges in recent times, which are not in line with the common interests of both sides and are also what China does not want to see. It is hoped that the ROK side will eliminate interference and work with China in the same direction to promote the sound development of bilateral relations.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi's remarks were very straightforward, saying that China is not satisfied with the current state of China-ROK relations. The Yoon Suk-yeol administration's deviant China policy is the main factor in why China-South Korea relations are in such a difficult situation that they are in today's predicament. Over the past period, South Korea has been actively engaged in the U.S.-led "Indo-Pacific Strategy," which is described as deepening ties with allies to further secure security and enhance South Korea's international influence. However, this approach is based on harming China's interests and regional stability.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Doi-yeol
For example, the United States, Japan, and the ROK have frequently held military exercises to pressure the DPRK, causing the situation on the peninsula to deteriorate and seriously undermining peace and stability in Northeast Asia. In addition, South Korea is also seeking to join AUKUS in the near future, and wants to cooperate with the United States in the field of advanced military technology. However, it is impossible for the Yoon Suk-yeol administration not to be unaware that the United States formed AUKUS to deal with China, and South Korea's participation in it is to join the military encirclement of China, which will undoubtedly have a direct impact on China-South Korea relations.
What displeased China the most was the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's inappropriate words and deeds on the Taiwan issue. Although there have been many frictions between China and South Korea in the past, the South Korean government has always been very cautious on the Taiwan issue and will not follow the United States in unscrupulous provocations like Japan. Now that Yoon Suk-yeol has taken office, his stance on the Taiwan issue has accelerated toward that of the United States, and he has made many fallacies that violate the one-China principle.
Yoon Suk-yeol
It is precisely these erroneous words and deeds of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration that have cast a shadow over China-South Korea relations. In order to bring bilateral relations out of the predicament, Foreign Minister Wang Yi also gave a solution. First, the ROK should abide by the one-China principle and properly and prudently handle Taiwan-related issues so as to consolidate the political foundation of bilateral relations. The Taiwan issue is an absolute red line, and as long as the ROK harms China's interests on this issue, Sino-ROK relations will certainly not be any better.
Second, the ROK needs to realize that China's industrial upgrading, that is, the development of new quality productive forces, is an important opportunity for the ROK, not a so-called "threat". The two sides should jointly oppose trade protectionism and maintain the stability and smoothness of the supply chain. Under the malicious smear of the United States, the discussion of "de-risking China" is very loud. The purpose of the United States in doing so is to incite public opinion and thus pressure its allies to cooperate with the United States in encircling China in the economic, trade, and scientific and technological fields.
Yoon Suk-yeol and Biden
For example, in recent years, the United States has pressured South Korea to participate in the containment of China in the field of semiconductors. For South Korea, it is a dilemma to be caught between China and the United States. On the one hand, if the United States fully cooperates, it will inevitably lose a large amount of the Chinese market, and the South Korean economy will only worsen. On the other hand, South Korea's high dependence on the United States on security issues, coupled with Yoon Suk-yeol's all-round pro-American foreign policy, has led to South Korea's dilemma on economic, trade, and technological issues.
In fact, this is true not only in the semiconductor field, but also in the automotive industry. Recently, the United States is planning to take measures to suppress China's connected cars, and many parts of South Korean cars come from China, so the game between China and the United States, South Korea will inevitably be affected. Yoon Suk-yeol needs to make the right choice between being constantly hijacked by the United States for domestic and foreign policies and further losing strategic autonomy, or whether to remain pragmatic and cooperate with China for a win-win situation.
China-South Korea relations
Regarding Foreign Minister Wang Yi's statement, Zhao Duilie responded positively on the spot. He said that the ROK government attaches great importance to its relations with China and looks forward to working closely with China to promote the development of China-ROK relations and jointly address challenges. The ROK does not approve of a zero-sum game and hopes to develop relations with other countries in a balanced manner, avoid geopolitical factors as much as possible to restrict bilateral cooperation, and open up a new situation for China-ROK cooperation. In addition, Zhao Duilie also invited Foreign Minister Wang Yi to visit the ROK. Judging from his statement, the Yoon Suk-yeol government will reverse its China policy. As for the final effect, it will depend on the actual actions of the South Korean side in the future.