South Korea's remarks carry deep implications! If the US ponders carefully, it will probably only be able to choose to smile bitterly! Before negotiating with the US, South Korea has made its stance clear! On April 23rd, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong stated that no country in the region is willing to make a binary choice between the US and China, and no country hopes to see the Sino-US strategic competition escalate into a "zero-sum game".
Cho Tae-yong frankly said that multilateral trade systems are supported, but the current international order is showing cracks, which is worrying. Clearly, before negotiating with the US, South Korea has made its position clear. What does South Korea's statement mean? First of all, South Korea does not want to take sides between China and the US. Secondly, South Korea supports multilateral trade. Thirdly, the multilateral trading system faces challenges, although South Korea did not point out who caused the cracks in the international order, but the implicit meaning pointing at the US is not hard to hear.
Previously, wasn't the US asking countries to take sides? But what does South Korea's statement mean? The US probably understands. To be honest, if it weren't for the US troops stationed in South Korea, South Korea's statement might not have been so tactful and would have been more straightforward. For a country so closely related to the US like South Korea, unwilling to publicly support US policies, it can be imagined how unpopular Trump's tariff war was globally. The US probably can only smile bitterly at South Korea's statement. Because this also reflects from the side how much the US's international appeal has fallen!
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1830292120839561/
Disclaimer: This article represents the author's personal views.