Recently three separate bilateral disputes ― between South Korea and China, South Korea and Japan, and Japan and China ― have exposed another aspect of the security environment in Northeast Asia. These recent events have compelled Korea to review its traditional four-power strategy.

More specifically, what do “the strategic cooperative partnership” between South Korea and China and “the more mature partnership” between South Korea and Japan mean in real terms? The same question can be raised about the trilateral cooperative mechanisms among South Korea, China and Japan and among South Korea, Japan and the U.S. How can they be utilized for the security of South Korea and the maintenance of peace and security in Northeast Asia? What kind of role can the ROK-U.S. alliance and a much-debated Northeast Asian Community play in this regard?

It goes without saying that Korea should determine its strategies for all conflicts in Northeast Asia for the purpose of protecting and promoting its national interests. South Korea’s national interests are fourfold: peace and security in the Korean Peninsula and the reunification of the two Koreas; the maintenance of peaceful and cooperative relationships with the three neighboring major powers; economic prosperity through bilateral and multilateral economic cooperation according to the WTO principles; and the peaceful and mutually beneficial settlement of territorial and historical issues with China and Japan.

So far, Korea has tried to achieve the first goal through its own self-sufficient military capabilities and the ROK-U.S. alliance, together with cooperation or acquiescence from the three neighboring powers. For the second goal Korea has actively participated in bilateral and trilateral dialogues with the four powers to build mutual trust and promote cooperation. In the economic field Korea has also expanded and intensified economic transactions with them. On the other hand, Korea has used various diplomatic channels and public relations diplomacy to deal with the territorial and historical issues.

Bilateral and multilateral interactions among Korea and the four great powers affect each other in a cobweb manner and create a domino effect. When North Korea is factored in, the situation becomes extremely complex.

When nations have disputes with other nations over their respective core national security issues directly affecting their political independence and territorial integrity, they become extremely nationalistic and jingoistic. Both globalization and the liberal international order, which promote free and open international exchanges and cooperation on the global scale, have made little impact on such national behavior.

The U.S. seems to take a dualistic position on the China-Japan territorial dispute and a neutral policy toward the South Korea-Japan dispute. China may side with South Korea to drive a wedge between the U.S. and South Korea and between South Korea and Japan.

Throughout Korean history, the security environment in Northeast Asia has been its most important foreign policy determinant. The main difference between the pre-World War II period and the post-World War II period is that the security environment has become more precarious and complex post-World War II mainly because of the division of the country and U.S. active involvement in Northeast Asian politics.

Living in such a geopolitical environment, South Korea should act according to the logic of the balance of power. One of the reasons for the fall of the Joseon Dynasty was that the kingdom failed to use balance of power politics wisely. When the king tried to use the U.S. and Russia to keep Japan and China in check, the ruling circles opposed it and insisted on the continued dependence on China.

The Asia-Pacific international order is in the process of transformation from the U.S.-dominated hierarchical system to a balance-of-power system. Under the circumstances, Korea’s best option is to strengthen and expand cooperative relations with its neighbors in all fields, while maintaining the ROK-U.S. alliance. If necessary, the ROK-U.S. alliance can expand the scope of cooperation in Northeast Asia, but U.S.-Korea security cooperation should remain bilateral and Korea should never compromise its sovereign right to determine the scope of security cooperation. At the same time, Korea needs to strengthen and expand its bilateral and multilateral security and economic cooperation mechanisms with the other great powers.

Such mechanisms can serve peace and prosperity by ameliorating the security dilemma and building the foundation for a Northeast Asian security community. It requires the most sophisticated diplomatic skill to maintain the balance of power in Northeast Asia. This is Korea’s destiny.

By Park Sang-seek

Park Sang-seek is a professor at the Graduate Institute of Peace Studies, Kyung Hee University. ― Ed.