U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken began a visit to crisis-ravaged South Korea on Monday, where he will delicately seek to encourage continuity in the policies, but not the tactics, of the accused president.
Blinken arrived in the snow-covered capital in what will likely be his last trip as America’s top diplomat before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.
He will meet with his counterpart Cho Tae-yul on Monday, the same day an arrest warrant expires to arrest suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol, who tried unsuccessfully to impose martial law on December 3.
Blinken highlights President Joe Biden’s efforts to build alliances and will then head to Tokyo, so it is crucial in the eyes of his advisers not to snub South Korea, which has a tense and often competitive relationship with Japan, which It is also home to thousands of American troops. .
Yoon had once been a favorite of the Biden administration with his bold moves to turn the page on friction with Japan and his sights set on a greater role for South Korea in global issues.
Yoon joined Biden for a historic three-way summit with Japan’s prime minister and, months before declaring martial law, was tapped to lead a global democracy summit, a signature initiative of the outgoing U.S. administration.
Yoon also memorably wowed her hosts on a state visit by singing “American Pie” at a White House dinner.
Blinken may face some criticism from the South Korean left for the visit, but he should be able to navigate the political crisis, said Sydney Seiler, a former U.S. intelligence officer focused on Korea, now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Blinken has a high enough profile to stay above the fray and can keep the focus on challenges like China and North Korea, he said.
“Blinken can sidestep many of these internal South Korean landmines with relative ease and contextualize them not as an attempt to help the ruling party or artificially create a sense of normalcy that would not otherwise exist,” Seiler said.
In a statement, the State Department did not directly mention the political crisis but said Blinken would seek to preserve trilateral cooperation with Japan, which has included increased intelligence sharing on North Korea.
Change in both allies
Blinken’s visit comes at a time of change for both countries, as Trump will return to the White House on January 20.
Paradoxically, while Biden worked closely with the conservative Yoon, Trump in his first term enjoyed a warm relationship with then-progressive President Moon Jae-in, who encouraged the US president’s innovative personal diplomacy with North Korea.
The Biden administration has emphasized since the crisis that it is reaching out to South Korean politicians who cross the divide, amid uncertainties over who will lead Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
Progressive opposition leader Lee Jae-Myung, who himself faces electoral disqualification in a court case, supports diplomacy with North Korea. But the former union activist has also taken positions that differ from those of Biden and Trump.
Lee has criticized the deployment of U.S.-made THAAD missile defenses, which Washington says are intended to protect against North Korea but which China views as a provocation.
South Korea’s left has long advocated a tougher stance toward Japan following its brutal occupation of the Korean Peninsula between 1910 and 1945.
U.S. officials said they had not received any warning about Yoon’s imposition of martial law, which brought masses of protesters to the streets.
Blinken, addressing reporters last month, said the crisis showed the strength of South Korea’s institutions built in the three decades since it embraced democracy.
“I think Korea is one of the world’s most powerful stories about the emergence of democracy and democratic resilience, and we will continue to look to Korea to set that example,” Blinken said.