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| Oh Joon, then South Korean ambassador to the United Nations, speaks during a Security Council meeting at U.N. headquarters in New York in this 2016 file photo. Korea Times file |
Yoon gov't advised to deal more carefully with diplomatic protocol
By Lee Hyo-jin
The summit between President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden slated for Wednesday will be an opportunity for South Korea to show progress in its goal to become a "global pivotal state," says Oh Joon, former South Korean ambassador to the United Nations.
"The symbolism of the summit will be something to be played up. This one will be a state visit rarely given by the U.S. government and taking place on the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-ROK alliance," Oh said in an interview with The Korea Times. ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official name.
"No matter how you cut it, the alliance has been a great success story in the history of both countries, helping bring economic prosperity and democracy to South Korea against the odds," he added.
Oh is a career diplomat who served in various posts, including ambassador and permanent representative to the U.N. from 2013 through 2016. During his term, he was elected as the president of the U.N. Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), one of the six main U.N. bodies. He currently serves as the chair of the Korean board of Save the Children.
According to the former ambassador, one of the outcomes that Yoon could bring from the summit is the advancement in his foreign policy objective of making South Korea a "global pivotal state," aiming to play a key role in enhancing global cooperation to address shared challenges.
He viewed that South Korea, as the fourth-largest economy in Asia and a rising cultural powerhouse, has now become an important partner for the U.S. in addressing mounting global issues.
"In that regard, South Korea might as well utilize its rising soft power, which is also widely recognized in America," Oh said.
Regarding key agendas of the summit, he said security and economic issues are two main areas Yoon should focus on.
"It would be important for President Yoon to win a stronger U.S. security commitment and to seek solutions to questions related to the impact of the U.S. technology policies on South Korean firms," Oh said.
As the summit comes at a time of high tensions on the Korean Peninsula, there are expectations that the two countries will agree to a stronger military alliance to deter North Korea's evolving nuclear threats.
"The U.S. nuclear umbrella for South Korea will have to be more strongly assured and more effectively operated, involving the use of wider-ranging military assets against threats from North Korea," he said, mentioning that military representatives of the two sides have been discussing "the revision of the ROK-U.S. tailored deterrence strategy."
But Oh viewed that the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Chips and Science Act, which are perceived in South Korea as favoring American businesses, will be among the toughest issues of the summit agenda.
"What kind of concessions the U.S. would be able to come up with and how they will be viewed by the Korean public are quite tricky issues, considering the intrinsic zero-sum nature of these economic issues," he said.
Other advice Oh had for the Yoon administration regarding the state visit was to exercise extra caution in diplomatic protocol to prevent mistakes that have occurred in previous diplomatic events in recent months.
During Yoon's visit to Washington last September, the president's alleged disparaging remarks about the U.S. congress ― which the presidential office denied ― was caught on hot mic, causing a major diplomatic scandal.
Oh said, "Even though substance is much more important than formality, it should be reminded that protocol is also a long-standing element of diplomacy."
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| President Yoon Suk Yeol shakes hands with U.S. President Joe Biden during a summit held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in November 2022. Yonhap |
China issue unlikely to be high on agenda
The Yoon government's strengthening of the alliance with the U.S. has invited some pushback from China and Russia.
Last week, South Korea and China traded barbs over Yoon's recent remarks on Taiwan that he "opposes attempts to change the status quo by force." Regarding this, China's foreign ministry warned against "verbal meddling" in its internal affairs. South Korea's foreign ministry condemned Beijing for committing a "serious diplomatic discourtesy" that calls into question China's national stature.
Asked whether the leaders of South Korea and U.S. will address China-related issues during the summit, Oh replied, "I don't think China or Taiwan will be high on the summit agenda this time, as neither of the two presidents would want to sound antagonizing to China at this point."
He noted that the issue will still be there for the countries to continue to tackle in the coming years.
The former ambassador observed that the ongoing war in Ukraine is an issue that will be dealt at the summit "directly or indirectly, whether or not it is on the agenda." The summit comes on the heels of the leak of Pentagon documents revealing that the U.S. spied on high-level South Korean officials discussing whether to sell artillery shells to Washington that could end up in Ukraine.
However, given that Seoul maintains an official position of not providing lethal weapons to Kyiv, Oh said the agenda will likely be addressed in the context of how South Korea can support the U.S.-led efforts to assist Ukraine in its war against Russia, rather than in relation to the wiretapping by the U.S.
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