Since assuming the office on 10 May 2022, the newly-elected President of the Republic of Korea or knowingly as South Korea, Yoon Suk-yeol, is targeting some things to be achieved during his administration. In matters of foreign policy, Yoon’s policies likely inclined into some way of his ideological parties which the conservative ones. It can be reflected as he speeches around what will his administration step on regarding addressing the notorious North Korea that recently resumed their nuclear missile testing series which somehow will be a prominent threat for the existence of South Korea shortly and for perpetual peace on the peninsula.
As being repeatedly told, the President will pursue peace on the peninsula by seriously pushing North Korea’s denuclearization with close supervision by the USA. That’s why he emphasizes the necessity of enhancing inter-Korean relations as with USA-North Korea relations. The behavior pushed the North Korea administration to likely cooperate with the USA as a third party in matters to bring back the peace for the peninsula reflecting his firm characteristics as ex-state chief prosecutor and also parallel with his party tendencies to deeply work with the USA.
Nikkei Asia noted Yoon ever describes North Korea as a main enemy then won’t hesitate to consider preemptive strike towards his main enemy if they take further dangerous steps objecting South Korea. Aside from his label to North Korea, during the inauguration day as broadcasted by Arirang News, President Yoon said he won’t take hassle manners if North Korea is ready to stop developing nuclear weapons and will help North Korea with bold plans to improve its economy by working together with the international community.
Besides focusing on the peninsula, Yoon also shared his vision about making South Korea as a global leading nation that contributes to freedom, peace, and prosperity. Relating the vision pushed Yoon to embracing bigger roles for South Korea to actively be a pivotal state in the global sphere. The administration reveals several things they might do relating to the vision, starting with considering joining the Quad, but the state is also quite sensible to take it seriously because it will affect South Korea relations with its bigger trade partners, which is the common contender for the Quad, China. As Pardo wrote down in his brief, to reconcile between an opportunity to seek more reliance with the USA vis-a-vis the state’s historical policy to remain it’s move to not to treat China as antagonist actor is an early challenge to Yoon’s administration.
Regarding the effort to be a global pivotal state, Yoon’s administration should consider and stay on track with the last administration foreign policies, the New Southern Policy and the Northern Policy. The New Southern Policy under Moon’s administration informally known as The NSP+, because the first version of NSP was revitalized under Moon’s administration.
The NSP+ aims for deeper relations among South Korea, ASEAN member states, and India in multisector focusing on the 3Ps which stands for People, Planet, and Prosperity. There are 16 derivative policies to engage more with the targeting countries by South Korea. Meanwhile, the New Northern Policy targets deeper economic cooperation with several eurasian countries such as Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Central Asian states, plus Mongolia and China. The committee reveals the 9-BRIDGE strategy which reflects 9 topics of cooperation ranging from energy to healthcare. On the northern policy, the former president with the committee also plotted what kind of programme or things to be achieved with each partner to make such complementary relations with each partner. Then, the relations would lead into mutually-beneficial cooperation.
Those initiatives should stay on Yoon’s desk not only to analyze the aftermath of implementation, but also to help the incumbent administration to play a bigger role. Even after releasing in 2020 the policy facing the Covid-19 pandemic as a heavy challenger, the NSP+ didn’t stop doing its task to penetrate to the target countries. In Indonesia, the NSP+ implemented under a related program called Indonesia-Korea New Souther Policy Young Professional Lab held hand-in-hand by the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) and the Korea Foundation on 24-25 May 2021. The hybrid-program aims to promote the policy, getting deeper about it, then together solving certain problems and formulate a solution in purpose to increase a better Indonesia-Korean affairs by getting into several workshops, panel discussions, and make a joint-paper recommendation.
For the Northern Policy, the Presidential Committee in December 2021 visited Russia to meet with several stakeholders such as Russia’s Deputy Minister for Economic Development, Mayor of St. Petersburg, and also had time to visit the Hyundai branch office. The trip also took place as a reaffirming moment of Russia’s stakeholders to share the future plans to influence the decision maker.
Therefore, putting commitment in those policies will benefit South Korea because nowadays we are facing dynamic and swift international relations that are better for the actors in it to invest in something which would likely increase their competitive advantages in the forum. Like the Indo-Pacific region issue, many governments realize the upcoming scenario and economic potential in the region must be handled carefully.
To reap the benefit regarding the interest in the region, South Korea should maintain its good relations with the involved parties around the region and maximize the diplomacy channel to build trust in each partner so the view towards South Korea in the region is neither as an aggressor nor as a greedy actor. Both policies, the northern and the southern, would be a good and proper way to influence the involved parties in the region and build more competitive advantages for South Korea since the participants also have the same opportunity to practice their rights within the region.
