[Column] China Only Strikes Its Neighbor Japan... Does It Deserve G2 Status?

[Asia Economy Reporter Haeyoung Kwon] "China's tolerance for the actions of different countries varies significantly. The United States must commit extremely bad acts to face corresponding measures, but South Korea becomes a target even with minor provocations."

This is the interpretation of Professor Su Inhong from Renmin University, a Chinese diplomatic expert, regarding China's suspension of visa issuance targeting only South Korea and Japan. He recently told the Hong Kong media South China Morning Post (SCMP) that "South Korea has a high economic dependence on China," making it an easy target for China as a neighboring country. This explains why, while the United States, Europe, and the rest of the world have strengthened their pandemic controls against China, China singled out only South Korea and Japan for retaliation. In fact, it means they were seen as easy targets and made an example of.

China's 'strong-weak-weak-strong' approach (being weak to the strong and strong to the weak) is nothing new. Before China's sudden retaliation, foreign media reported an increase in US-led offensives against China. These included the trilateral semiconductor supply chain cooperation among North American countries, the US House of Representatives passing a 'China Special Committee' resolution, and discussions by the US Ambassador to Japan on semiconductor export controls targeting China. All these reports emerged within a day or two. Yet China has not uttered a word against the US and is instead signaling to normalize long-suspended flights due to COVID-19.

Looking at China’s discriminatory measures targeting only South Korea, the relatively 'weaker link,' it is hard to dismiss the idea that diplomacy with China based on trust is ultimately an illusion. We may be uncomfortable from China's perspective as we cannot ignore the US, which is strengthening its encirclement of China by partnering with allies through frameworks like the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the Chip 4 alliance. Nevertheless, China's discriminatory actions, which disregard South Korea's political and diplomatic realities, reveal the level of China's perception of its neighboring countries. Due to China's unilateral retaliation, our government and companies are once again facing the 'China risk'.

The world talks about the US-China hegemonic competition. Does China truly deserve the status of a 'G2 (two major powers)'? Is South Korea a country that needs to ponder strategic ambiguity regarding its value-based alliance with the US? It is difficult to be certain. The answer to which country should be our priority amid the whirlpool of US-China competition seems clear. A businessperson with a diplomatic background I met recently said, "The lower the posture in diplomacy with China, the harder it becomes. We must understand that without the US-ROK relationship, there is no China-ROK relationship." This statement echoes in my ears after China's narrow-minded retaliation incident.