[Global Column] The Beijing Olympics and the Dilemma of Value Diplomacy

Political realism is the perspective that the realms of politics and morality are clearly separated, and political judgments cannot be evaluated based on moral standards. The figure who theoretically systematized political realism is Niccol? Machiavelli, a 16th-century Italian diplomat and political philosopher. According to him, moral actions and successful political actions tend to be opposed rather than aligned. Hans Morgenthau, a professor at the University of Chicago, applied Machiavelli's realism to international politics and made significant contributions to establishing international politics as an independent discipline from international law and diplomatic history. According to Morgenthau, international politics is a fierce struggle arena pursuing interests defined by power. In this context, the space for moral demands is very limited.

In the realm of international politics, dominated by political realism and power struggles, voices demanding moral and ethical behavior have recently gained attention. During the US-China summit held via video conference on October 15, US President Biden emphasized that the US, together with its allies, will continue to pursue not only interests but also 'values,' expressing concern over the Chinese government's human rights abuses in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong. Under this policy, prior to the meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following the US-China summit, President Biden mentioned considering the possibility of a 'diplomatic boycott' of the Beijing Winter Olympics, sending only athletes without an official delegation. The diplomatic boycott is said to be a strategy to respond to the alleged human rights abuses committed by the Chinese government in places such as Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

From the perspective of political realism, the Biden administration's value diplomacy based on human rights and democracy is not an end in itself but merely a means to achieve the goal of enhancing 'interests defined by power' in the power struggle of US-China hegemony competition. However, in political actions, not only practical benefits but also legitimacy are important factors. Therefore, the extent to which actions pursuing interests defined by power can be morally justified also greatly influences the success or failure of political actions. Thus, even if the Biden administration's value diplomacy is merely a tool for power struggle to pressure China, since human rights and democracy have become somewhat universal international norms, the Biden administration's value diplomacy can have the effect of isolating China internationally.

Due to the hegemony competition between the security ally, the United States, and China, with increasing economic dependence, South Korea faces the significant challenge of coordinating so that economic and security interests do not conflict. Furthermore, the Biden administration's value diplomacy raises another challenge of how to reconcile economic benefits with normative values. Internationally, South Korea is recognized as a country that has achieved both industrialization and democratization?that is, a country that has accomplished both economic benefits and political norms. South Korea will be put to the test diplomatically on whether it can harmoniously implement both economic benefits and normative values. The Beijing Olympics will be the first test. If Western democratic countries, led by the United States, implement a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics in response to human rights abuses, what choice should South Korea make?

Jae-Hwan Jeong, Professor, Department of International Relations, University of Ulsan