SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s Democratic Party will maintain the nation’s alliances with the U.S. and Japan and will not tilt toward China if it wins the June 3 presidential election, a leader of the liberal party says.
But lawmaker Wi Sung-lac told The Washington Times that reengaging with North Korea, reviving historical diplomatic disputes with Tokyo and responding to President Trump’s tariffs are also on the table, while potential use of U.S. Forces Korea for off-peninsula actions, such as a Taiwan crisis, is murky.
“The main pillar of DPK [Democratic Party of Korea] foreign policy thinking is a strong alliance between South Korea and the U.S., and the partnership between South Korea and Japan, and trilateral cooperation,” Mr. Wi said.
Geopolitical issues are front and center as Seoul gears up for the presidential election following the impeachment of conservative President Yoon Seok Yeol over his December martial law decree.
DPK presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung is leading in the polls. Since the DPK already controls the unicameral National Assembly, the party enjoys a real possibility of capturing both branches of government. (Mr. Yoon was removed from office this year, and is standing trial on an insurrection charge.)
Mr. Lee had spoken forcibly at rallies condemning the Yoon administration’s pro-Tokyo policies. But with the Blue House within reach, the left-wing firebrand is rebranding himself as a centrist. In February, Mr. Lee dubbed the DPK “center right,” irking some lawmakers who prefer the label “progressive.”
The DPK candidate is “clicking right” to establish himself as “the people’s candidate,” not just the progressive option,” the Joongang Ilbo, Korea’s number-two newspaper, said Tuesday.
While Mr. Lee is critical about history, “regarding cooperation in the present and future, his stance is very open-minded,” Mr. Wi told The Times.
However, he added that historical animosities that had been sidelined by Mr. Yoon would not be ignored by a Lee government.
“We will discuss,” Mr. Wi said emphatically. “The Germans and Israelis: Did they put these things into the hands of historians?”
About Beijing, Mr. Wi said the DPK doesn’t “believe we need to tilt back toward China,” indicating another turnaround for the party’s presidential candidate. In 2023, Mr. Lee courted domestic disapproval after a chummy meeting with China’s ambassador.
However, relations with China are touchy. Beijing was infuriated by U.S. Forces’ establishment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system in South Korea in 2017: Its powerful radar could snoop on northeast China’s upper atmosphere.
Beijing retaliated. Korean businesses’ China operations suffered, Chinese tour groups to Korea dried up and K-pop concerts were halted.
“That had some consequences,” Mr. Wi said. “Because of the overreaction and retaliatory action against us, public opinion in South Korea turned extremely bad against [the] Chinese.”
THAAD “is no longer a big issue,” he said.
Still, widespread demonization of Russia and China amid the Ukraine war by elements of the international community has generated “blowback,” Mr. Wi said. Beijing and Moscow have “unprecedentedly” sided with North Korea at the U.N. Security Council, he said, calling the situation “undesirable.”
Mr. Wi insisted that South Korea’s alliance with the U.S., which includes a mutual defense treaty and the deployment of 28,000 U.S. troops on Korean soil, and its trilateral defense cooperation with Japan — a standout Yoon initiative — would be safe under Mr. Lee.
No Korean party with hopes of power can be anti-American. A poll published Monday by Seoul-based think tank the Asan Institute found that 74.2% of South Koreans view the U.S. as the most important country for their economy, 85.8% see the U.S. as a “preferred future partner” and 71.2% want U.S. troops in-country.
Mr. Wi anticipated renewed contact between Washington and Pyongyang, citing Mr. Trump’s first-term meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and possible engagement between Pyongyang and Tokyo.
Such moves, he hoped, would restart frozen North-South dialogue. Negotiations should focus on denuclearization, but talks themselves cannot reduce tension and build confidence, he said.
Seoul would not breach international sanctions against North Korea, but humanitarian, medical and cultural projects could lay “groundwork for meaningful, tangible developments” on nuclear issues, Mr. Wi said.
Thorny matters
Risk lies in the changing stance of U.S. Forces Korea. Though officially postured against North Korea, USFK has shifted geographically from the DMZ to three major land-air bases south of Seoul, along Korea’s China-facing Yellow Sea Coast.
The U.S. Army, on its website, calls the central U.S. base at Pyeongtaek “the largest force-projection platform in the region.” The U.S. Navy can access strategically located South Korean bases at Jeju Island and Pyeongtaek.
“I don’t believe [the U.S. bases were] designed to deal with the China problem,” Mr. Wi said. “All these bases were designed for dealing with North Korea.”
Yet with Beijing now Washington’s prime strategic rival, Seoul faces a similar risk with Tokyo. If the U.S. confronts China on Taiwan or in the South or East China Seas, American bases on their territories mean Korea and Japan could be sucked into war.
Though use of USFK against China, “is not the major policy stance of the Pentagon yet,” Mr. Wi said he knew of voices in Washington raising the issue.
“We are in a dilemma,” he said. The possibility of North Korea working with China in a potential confrontation means South Korea’s “major role is to cover the northern front,” he said. “I am not saying we cannot do anything … but … I don’t want to go into detail.”
Mr. Wi was animated about Mr. Trump’s tariffs, which include a 25% levy on Korean imports such as automobiles and electronics. The U.S. president’s sweeping tariffs on various nations have been suspended for three months.
Mr. Wi said the tariffs are “a source of great concern” and “a completely unconventional approach.” But, he added, “It is reality, and we have to deal with this new reality.”
South Korea has a free-trade agreement with the U.S. and is a major investor in America’s autos, chips and display sectors. It is also a core player in globally strategic products including semiconductors, ships and defense items, while its firms could play roles in a pet project of Mr. Trump’s — the Alaska energy pipeline.
“We have to try to make some deal,” Mr. Wi said. “Washington and Seoul should not forget that the most important thing is mutual trust based on the spirit of our alliance.”
