[사설] Changes in the US keynote revealed at the 2+2 meeting, must be faced

President Moon Jae-in interviews US Secretary of State Tony Blincoln and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin at the Blue House on the afternoon of the 18th. [연합뉴스]

At the’Korea-US 2+2 (Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense) Conference’ held in Seoul after five years on the 17th-18th, US Secretary of State Tony Blincoln condemned the crackdown of human rights by North Korea and China with a particularly strong tone. He then urged a’common approach of the alliance’ to China’s aggressive actions. It is unprecedented for the US Secretary of State to specifically address North Korean human rights as well as human rights suppression by Hong Kong and Xinjiang in Seoul and demand a joint response.
Secretary of State Blincoln is also known to have urged South Korea to express its clear position on human rights in North Korea and China and to improve relations between Korea and Japan. This has great implications in that it is a card thrown after maturing through coordination with alliances such as the Quad (US, Japan, India and Australia Security Council) and the European Union (EU). If the government adheres to the existing strategic ambiguity and avoids acceptance, the Republic of Korea is likely to be left alone outside the alliance fence.

These concerns became real as soon as the talks were over. President Moon Jae-in met the two US ministers and said, “We will work closely together for the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.” It can be misunderstood. This is in contrast to what Secretary Blincoln said in all of the talks as’denuclearization of North Korea’.
In response to the question of’Singapore-North Korea-US agreement succession’ questioned at a press conference, Foreign Minister Eui-Yong Eui said, “Singapore-North Korea-US agreement (succession) should be considered.” In Washington, the 2018 Singapore-North Korea-US summit has been stigmatized as the epitome of’diplomatic failure’ and has been virtually abolished. This is why Blingen’s silence is interpreted as a message of’rejection’.
This contradiction is at the root of the unrealistic response of the government to ignore the US stance toward North Korea, which has changed rapidly with the inauguration of the Biden administration. Before speaking with his partner, Minister Chung, Secretary Blincoln criticized the human rights situation in North Korea and China and emphasized the need for a joint response. It’s no different from the Biden administration’s nailing of the’unreasonable line’. In this context, the government attempted to launch a’peace process on the Korean peninsula’ by reducing the ROK-US joint training for the third year. However, what came back was Kim Yeo-jeong’s discourse calling for’complete abolition of joint training’.
In the days of the Biden administration, which is trying to cooperate with the alliance to bring sticks and carrots to North Korea, the Trump-era’summit show’ does not work. The government must reinforce the sanctions against North Korea by restoring the remarkably loose cooperation between the US and the ROK over the past four years, and face-to-face with Washington in establishing a strategy to lure North Korea into dialogue. To do so, it is essential to restore cooperation between the US and Japan through rapid improvement in relations between Korea and Japan, and it is necessary to speak up on human rights issues in North Korea. As Secretary Blincoln’s remarks show, the United States has turned to a’coupling’ strategy that puts North Korea in public pressure. If it is difficult to join the public pressure, it is time to calmly accept the strict reality that the alliance can only roll through even if it is necessary to speak out on North Korean human rights. Participation in the quad should also be actively reviewed. It can be an opportunity to broaden the scope of luck while putting a brake on excessive public pressure from the United States. Isn’t Japan, India, and Australia also taking advantage of the quad to take advantage of the national interest?