Reorganization of Korea-US Diplomatic and Security Lines... Will 'South-North-US' Dialogue Progress?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] As the Biden administration officially launched on the 21st, attention is focused on whether the 'South-North-US dialogue,' which had been at a standstill for the past two years, will resume. The Moon Jae-in administration reorganized its diplomatic and security line in line with the launch of the Biden administration, and the Biden administration also placed experts in its diplomatic line.

Sung Kim, a Korean-American and former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, was appointed on the 20th (local time) as the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs in the Joe Biden administration. The Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs is the highest-ranking official in the State Department responsible for Korea, China, and Japan-related affairs. He is a Korea policy expert who coordinated key agendas while serving as the Philippine ambassador during the 2018 Singapore North Korea-U.S. summit.

Tony Blinken, the nominee for Secretary of State, and Wendy Sherman, the nominee for Deputy Secretary of State, are also well-known experts on the Korean Peninsula, meaning that the Biden administration's diplomatic line is filled with specialists on the Korean Peninsula issue. Professor Shin Yul of Myongji University's Department of Political Science and Diplomacy said, "To sum up the Biden administration's diplomatic line in one phrase, 'the experts have returned,'" adding, "Unlike the Trump administration, which lacked diplomatic experience and whose diplomacy was inevitably 'showy,' the Biden administration will be different."

The Moon administration also reorganized its diplomatic line in line with the launch of the Biden administration. By nominating Chung Eui-yong, the presidential special advisor for foreign affairs and national security who designed the 'Korean Peninsula peace process,' as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, it established a 'two-top' diplomatic system with Suh Hoon, the Director of the National Security Office. The decision to reappoint him, who played a significant role in facilitating the 2018 inter-Korean and North Korea-U.S. summits, is interpreted as showing the Moon administration's will to advance South-North-US dialogue. Park Jong-chul, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said, "Appointing Chung, who led the peace agreement in 2018, seems to be an attempt to reactivate that process," adding, "Both Chung and Suh were key figures at that time."

Meanwhile, on the 22nd (local time), the White House stated that President Biden recognizes North Korea's nuclear threat as a 'serious threat' and intends to present a 'new strategy' for North Korea's denuclearization. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said at a briefing that the new administration's North Korea policy "will adopt a new strategy to keep the American people and allies safe," and "will begin a thorough policy review of the North Korea situation in close consultation with South Korea, Japan, and other allies." This suggests that the Biden administration will shift from the Trump administration's 'top-down approach' to a policy that emphasizes working-level negotiations in consultation with allies.