South Korean President Yoon Comments on Taiwan Ahead of State Visit to the US

Experts break down reasons why South Korea is abandoning Beijing and turning to Washington

(L-R) South Korean first lady Kim Keon-hee, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden wave during an arrival ceremony at the White House in Washington, on April 26, 2023. Win McNamee/Getty Images

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol took a firm stance on the issue of the Taiwan Strait on the eve of his state visit to the United States. Experts say this signifies that South Korea has officially abandoned its policy of strategic ambiguity between Washington and Beijing.

In an interview with Reuters on April 19, Yoon said that tensions in the Taiwan Strait “occurred because of [Beijing’s] attempts to change the status quo by force, and [South Korea] together with the international community absolutely oppose such a change.”

“The Taiwan issue is not simply an issue between China and Taiwan but, like the issue of North Korea, it is a global issue,” he added.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has claimed the democratically governed Taiwan as a Chinese province despite the fact that Taiwan is a de-facto independent country with its own military, democratically-elected government, and constitution.

The CCP has exerted diplomatic and military pressure to get Taipei to accept its sovereignty and vowed to conquer the self-governing island by force if necessary.

With China being South Korea’s largest trade partner, Yoon has treaded cautiously on topics relating to U.S.-China relations. But he appears to have taken a firm position over tensions in the Taiwan Strait, which certainly displeases Beijing.

Beijing’s Irritated Response

Following Yoon’s remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin responded at a press conference on April 20 that the Taiwan issue is purely an internal affair of the Chinese and that it is “no one else’s business to comment on it.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin takes a question during a daily Foreign Ministry briefing in Beijing on July 24, 2020. Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images

A South Korean foreign ministry spokesperson said Wang’s comment was “appalling.”

“I have to point out that this comment is a serious diplomatic indiscretion that raises questions about China’s national character,” the Korean spokesperson said.

According to The Chosun Ilbo, South Korean public opinion found it extraordinary for the South Korean Foreign Ministry to use such a term as “national character” to describe Chinese authorities.

On the same day, the South Korean Foreign Ministry summoned Xing Haiming, the Chinese Ambassador to South Korea, to protest against the CCP’s comments on Yoon’s Taiwan-related remarks.

The following day, on April 21, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang threatened the international community by saying, “Those who play with fire on the question of Taiwan will burn themselves.”

Qin made the remarks at the end of a keynote speech at a forum hosted by his ministry. During the speech, he repeatedly praised Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s Global Security Initiative while espousing China’s contribution to the global economy and the interests of developing nations, according to The Independent.

A South Korean foreign ministry official responded to Qin’s remarks on Taiwan the same day.

He said, “The South Korean government will always adhere to the position of promoting cooperation between Korea and China based on the spirit of mutual respect, mutual benefit, and adherence to national character and etiquette. I hope the Chinese side will also respond by being careful with their words and actions.”

Expert: South Korea Has Clearly Picked a Side

In the interview with Reuters, Yoon also said that South Korea might extend its support for Ukraine beyond humanitarian and economic aid if it comes under a large-scale civilian attack, signaling a possible shift in his stance against arming Ukraine for the first time.

Since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war, South Korea has not directly provided arms to Ukraine, citing a long-standing policy of not supplying weapons to countries actively engaged in conflict, according to The Economic Times.

Following the interview, the Kremlin said that Yoon’s statement implies intervention in the war, according to Yonhap News Agency, to which Seoul responded that its future actions would depend on the actions of the Russian side.

Kim Taewoo, former head of Seoul’s Korea Institute for National Unification and a former senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, told The Epoch Times on April 21 that the North Korean nuclear issue is now gravely serious, and it has become urgent for South Korea to strengthen its security alliance with the United States and Japan.

“For the South to implement a nuclear balance with the North, it would require the United States to invest its nuclear arsenals on the Korean Peninsula. To achieve this key diplomatic outcome, the South Korean government has made strong statements against Beijing and Moscow,” Kim said.

He said that South Korea is abandoning its policy of strategic ambiguity and turning to the United States because it has no other choice.

“North Korea has long been threatening South Korea with its nuclear weapons, but the CCP and Russia continue to protect North Korea’s nuclear interests by exercising their veto powers on sanctions against North Korea in the United Nations Security Council. South Korea can’t survive if it does not turn to the United States,” Kim said.

He added that South Korea would also be in grave danger if Beijing attacked Taiwan because many Western nations, including the United States and Japan, would all go to support Taiwan, and the Korean Peninsula would be left with no protection.

A general view shows a United Nations security council meeting on non-proliferation and the DPRK, or North Korea, at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on March 20, 2023. Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images

Expert: Beijing Is Upset About Something Else

Lee Ji-Yong, a professor of international studies at South Korea’s Keimyung University, told The Epoch Times on April 21 that he believed Beijing’s non-diplomatic, very abrasive, and rogue-like comment about President Yoon’s remarks on Taiwan was intended as a threat ahead of his state visit to the United States.

“On the surface, it appears to be about Taiwan, but if you look deeper, Yoon’s visit to Washington is actually about North Korea’s nuclear weapons. He wants to ask for a level of protection from the United States that exceeds the level of protection from NATO.

“If successful, it would break the strategic nuclear threat that the CCP has backhandedly assembled in East Asia—North Korea’s nuclear weapons—to contain the U.S. and its allies. And this move that South Korea is making has infuriated Beijing.”

To commemorate the 70th anniversary of U.S.–South Korean diplomatic ties, Yoon will visit Washington from April 24 to 29 at the invitation of U.S. President Joe Biden. Yoon’s trip is the first state visit to the United States by a South Korean leader in 12 years.

President Biden welcomed Yoon to the White House on April 26, where both leaders are expected to sign a declaration to counter the growing nuclear threat from North Korea.

A senior administration official briefed reporters on April 25 that Washington will be taking significant steps to strengthen the U.S. commitment to “extended deterrence” on the Korean Peninsula.

Both leaders will sign an agreement called the Washington Declaration to counter the growing threat from North Korea, a response to its increased missile test launches into international waters.

U.S. President Joe Biden (R) and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol walk on the colonnade as they make their way to a meeting in the Oval Office at the White House, in Washington, on April 26, 2023. Win McNamee/Getty Images