China — South Korea Relations Remains Lukewarm
China-South Korea relations have been resumed recently after a diplomatic row last year over a US — backed anti-missile defense system (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense or THAAD) which was deployed by Seoul. However, despite nearly a year, South Korean business in China are still feeling the chill of restrictions imposed by Beijing. The restriction on tourism is not fully lifted and advertisements showing South Korean celebrities are still not shown on Chinese television.
In defense, South Korea said the installation was needed to keep it safe from the North Korean nuclear threat, but Beijing said the anti-missile system was unacceptable as it can detect China’s military secrets and saw it as a threat targeting China, compromising the country’s national security, rather than a way to deter North Korea’s ambitions.
It was estimated by the South Korean national assembly’s budget office that China’s aggressive unofficial campaign cost South Korea’s tourism industry 7.5 trillion won (US$6.7 billion) between January and September 2017.
In addition, South Korean television shows, pop stars and celebrities were reportedly banned or blocked from Chinese television and advertisements (although Beijing never officially announced these bans and has denied any clampdown).
With the strained relationship between two countries, South Korean President Moon Jae-in tried to mend relations by a diplomatic visit to China. Xi Jinping also said through a statement that war must never be allowed in the Korean peninsula.
South Korean exports reportedly fell slightly in December 2017 providing fresh evidence of a cooling global economy.
South Korea’s trade ministry said that exports in December fell 1.2 percent from the same month in 2017, hit by falling memory-chip and oil prices and cooling demand from China.
South Korea is the world’s leading exporter of computer chips, ships, cars and petroleum products. It is the first major exporter to report trade data each month, so provides an early reading of global trade. Exports to China dropped 13.9 percent in December over a year earlier, as trade friction with the United States weighed on demand from the largest buyer of South Korean goods.
According to South Korean poll, China is the country presenting the biggest barrier to peace on the Korean peninsula which surpass North Korea.
“China’s economic retaliation to Seoul’s decision to allow THAAD to be deployed in South Korea has had a negative impact on South Koreans’ perception of China,” Choi said.
In the survey by the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies (IPUS) at Seoul National University, 46 per cent of respondent viewed China as “The most threatening country to peace on the Korean peninsula”, which is a dramatic increase from 2016, when 17 percent said China was the most threatening.
IPUS senior researcher Choi Gyu-bin suggested the figures stemmed from the dispute over the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system.
Presently, Seoul is de facto complying with Beijing’s prescribed “freeze-for-freeze” and engagement solutions to the North Korea nuclear issue. The best maneuver for South Korea and current President Moon is to establish a cooperative posture and help de-escalate the conflict on the Korean Peninsula and at the same time comply with China’s security concerns. But we must remember that South Korea’s long-term strategy for dealing with North Korea still aligns with United States. China is also watching and waiting how far Seoul will stray from its strategy that’s probably and precisely why Chinas has not lifted all of its sanctions on South Korea to maintain leverage until Seoul demonstrates estranged US relations pertaining to the defense system strategy and the North Korea nuclear issue.
Reference:
Lee, J. (2018, October 04). China, not North Korea, is biggest threat to peace, South Koreans say. Retrieved February 9, 2019, from https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2166792/china-not-north-korea-our-biggest-threat-peace-south-koreans
McGuire, K. (2018, February 27). China-South Korea Relations: A Delicate Détente. Retrieved February 9, 2019, from https://thediplomat.com/2018/02/china-south-korea-relations-a-delicate-detente/
Online, T. S. (2019, January 01). South Korea Dec exports in surprise fall as global economy cools amid China-US dispute. Retrieved from https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2019/01/01/south-korea-dec-exports-in-surprise-fall-as-global-economy-cools-amid-china-us-dispute/
Zhou, L. (2018, October 18). South Korea and China relations warming but chilly restrictions remain. Retrieved February 9, 2019, from https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2169183/south-korea-and-china-relations-warming-chilly-restrictions