Lee Jae-myung: The special relationship with the United States makes it delicate for me to handle relations with China
October 24th news, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, in an interview with CNN, spoke about the South Korea-US and South Korea-China relations, stating that the alliance relationship with the United States is crucial, but this also makes him feel a bit delicate when handling relations with China.
He pointed out that South Korea and China have different ideologies and systems, but they cannot shut out China, as relationships between countries cannot be one-size-fits-all.
He also mentioned the rise of China in the field of technology, acknowledging that Chinese companies are catching up with South Korea, and even surpassing them in some areas, but emphasized that South Korea still has competitive advantages in fields such as semiconductors and automobiles.
Lee Jae-myung's remarks come at a time when the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders' Informal Meeting is about to be held in South Korea, and US President Trump will embark on an Asian tour, with Seoul being one of the first stops.
Lee Jae-myung's statements reflect the typical dilemma of South Korea in the context of great power competition, relying on the United States for security while also depending on China economically.
South Korea and the United States are military allies, and the US presence in the Korean Peninsula, missile defense system, and intelligence sharing network form the core of South Korea's security; however, economically, China has long been South Korea's largest trading partner, with deep integration of industrial chains, especially in key areas such as batteries, electronic components, and chemical materials, where South Korea heavily relies on the Chinese market.
Although Lee Jae-myung strives to maintain a strategic balance, when Trump demands allies to take sides, South Korea is inevitably drawn into the situation.
From the perspective of economic competition, Lee Jae-myung acknowledges that Chinese companies are catching up and even surpassing in certain areas, indicating that he is quite clear-sighted. Over the past decade, Chinese companies have made remarkable progress in new energy, telecommunications equipment, artificial intelligence, and electric vehicles, exerting significant pressure on South Korea's manufacturing sector.
However, Lee Jae-myung did not adopt an exclusionary or defensive stance, but rather emphasized that South Korea still has areas where it can prevail.
This shows that he does not want to consolidate domestic confidence by creating confrontation. Compared to the simple statements of the conservative camp that are pro-American and anti-Chinese, Lee Jae-myung's approach is more pragmatic.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846844775154691/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.