Koreans still view Chinese as economic partners

Diplomacy

Published: 23 Aug. 2022, 18:42

Koreans still view Chinese as economic partners

Banners commemorating the 30th anniversary of Korea-China relations are spotted near the Chinese Embassy in central Seoul Tuesday. [NEWS1]

Nearly 44 percent of respondents believe economic cooperation is the best direction for Korea-China relations, according to a JoongAng Ilbo survey released Tuesday ahead of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the countries.

The poll was jointly commissioned by the JoongAng Ilbo and the Seoul-based think tank East Asia Institute (EAI) and conducted by Hankook Research. It questioned 1,028 adults between July 21 and Aug. 8 and has a confidence level of 95 percent with a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.

According to the first part of the survey released Sunday, 70.3 percent of respondents had negative impressions of Beijing. Thus, the fact that four in 10 people chose an "economic-centered functional cooperation" as the most preferred direction for the future of bilateral relations is seen as a realistic public recognition that Korea needs China as an economic partner.

Only 6.6 percent of the respondents chose "distancing from China" as the preferred direction for bilateral relations.

In turn, only 30.2 percent of respondents said all-around comprehensive cooperation should be pursued, while 16.6 percent said it is necessary to establish a relationship centered on security cooperation and crisis management.

This shows that despite the 30-year history of diplomatic ties, Koreans are still wary about carrying Seoul-Beijing relations beyond economic ties to security cooperation.

More people regarded cooperation in economic-related issues as a top priority for the Korean government in diplomacy with China than previously.

According to a survey conducted in 2021, toward the end of the Moon Jae-in administration, 24.4 percent of respondents said that cooperation on denuclearization should be top priority, higher than those who chose the economy as a priority, which was 20.8 percent.

In this year's survey, 33.9 percent of respondents chose cooperating on the economy and advanced technologies as Seoul's top diplomatic priority, more than double those who chose cooperation on the North Korean nuclear issue at 16.1 percent.

The results reflect the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's shift in priorities to the economy. The public is also more economics-conscious due to rising inflation.

The poll showed that 25.5 percent of respondents said South Koreans and Chinese improving their mutual perceptions of each other should be a top diplomatic priority, compared to 20.1 percent last year.

In this year's poll, 16.1 percent said that completely resolving issues related to the deployment of the U.S.-led Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) antimissile system should be a priority, compared to 12.7 percent in 2021. Beijing has objected to the Seoul-Washington decision to deploy the Thaad in Korea since it was announced in 2016, calling it a U.S. scheme to spy on China.

Some analysts point out that unlike the Moon administration, the Yoon government has already made clear its goal to denuclearize Pyongyang and plans to strengthen Seoul-Beijing cooperation on North Korea issues. Thus, the nuclear issue appears to be less of a focus.

"As seen through collecting the perceptions of the respondents in this survey, the economy is the area that needs the most attention and consideration in South Korea-China relations," said Kim Yang-gyu, executive director of the EAI.

Koreans also viewed the Sino-U.S. rivalry as their biggest threat, surpassing the North Korean nuclear threat, climate change and the Covid-19 pandemic.

When asked what is the greatest threat currently facing South Korea, 39.5 percent of respondents said the U.S.-China military rivalry; 29.3 percent said Sino-U.S. technology competition; 19.6 percent said North Korea's nuclear and missile threats; and 7.7 percent said climate change and environmental issues.

However, given the choice of multiple answers, results showed that Koreans were especially concerned about repercussions from the U.S-China economic competition.

When allowed to give multiple answers, 60.8 percent of respondents said the Sino-U.S. economic and technology competition was the greatest threat faced by Korea and 54.8 percent said the U.S.-China military rivalry was.

In contrast, 44.4 percent were concerned about the North Korean nuclear threat; 23.6 percent about climate change; and 16 percent about Covid-19 and infectious diseases.

In last year's survey on threats faced by South Korea, 44.7 percent were concerned about U.S.-China military rivalry and 43.8 percent about economic competition. Respondents were allowed to give multiple answers

When asked what foreign policy should be prioritized by the Yoon Suk-yeol government in this year's poll, 38.8 percent said strengthening economic diplomacy; 31.2 percent said international cooperation for progress in North Korean denuclearization; 28.5 percent said strengthening the South Korea-U.S. alliance; 20.9 percent said responding to the Sino-U.S. competition; 20.8 percent said expanding inter-Korean cooperation; 17.8 percent said strengthening South Korea-China cooperation; and 10.9 percent said restoring Korea-Japan relations. Respondents were allowed to choose more than one answer.

Experts point out that limiting the Seoul-Beijing relationship to economic cooperation can impede resolving the North Korea nuclear issue or fundamentally improving bilateral ties.

"Putting weight on the economy in Korea-China relations is inevitable and realistic," said Park Ihn-hwi, international studies professor at Ewha Womans University.

"But if the future relationship between the two countries is limited to the economy, there is a risk that it will also limit resolving the contradictions in the regional structure in the future. In particular, given that the cause of conflict between Korea and China is not only economic but related to complex issues such as international relations, differences in political systems, democratization and human rights, the public perception can be interpreted to herald prolonged strife between the two countries."

Nonetheless, more South Koreans perceived the country's security situation to be in a stable position than before.

When asked their perception of South Korea's security situation, 31.7 percent of respondents answered that it was "stable," higher than in similar surveys conducted in 2014, 2018 and 2020, while 26.6 percent responded "unstable," lower than in previous polls.

BY KANG TAE-HWA, SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]