A bittersweet departure of an ambassador

YOU SANG-CHUL
The author is the head of the China Institute of the JoongAng Ilbo and CEO of China Lab.

Chinese Ambassador to Korea Xing Haiming left Korea on July 10. It is sad to see the departure of a Chinese diplomat — a Korea specialist — who rose thanks to his Korean language skill but also fell because of it. The question “Did you graduate from Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang?” was a question he was not comfortable with. He graduated from Sariwon University of Agriculture in Hwanghae Province. Anyway, he gained the trust of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi for his fluent Korean, and briefed President Xi Jinping on the Korea-China relationship.

But it was his Korean proficiency that haunted him. The critical blow was his remarks on June 2023 during a meeting with the opposition leader: “You would regret it if you bet on China’s defeat.” President Yoon Suk Yeol said that the ambassador reminded him of Yuan Shikai, who manipulated Joseon Dynasty’s state affairs in the late 19th century. That comment by Xing practically ended his career in Korea. If he had made the remark in Chinese, the aftermath would not have been so serious.

He had two wishes when he was dispatched to Korea as an ambassador. One was building a good relationship between Korea and China, and the other was that his daughter from his deceased ex-wife would live happily in Korea. More than 500 Korean acquaintances attended his resignation event held at the Chinese Embassy in downtown Seoul on July 9. “I will try to develop China-Korea relations wherever I am in the future,” he said. I think this came from his heart.

Now all eyes are on who will be the next ambassador. Among the eight ambassadors, four were Korea experts, three were Japan experts and one was an international expert.

Of course, Korea specialists have many advantages. The absence of a language barrier enhances work efficiency. However, as they hang out with Koreans frequently, unexpected problems arise. Third Ambassador Li Bin had frequent drinking outings and ended his public career when there were rumors of an information leak. Xing Haiming, a mid-level diplomat at the time, was also in trouble. The fatigue over Korea experts led to appointments of Japan or international experts as ambassadors to Korea.

As a result, Japanese and international experts served as the fifth to seventh ambassadors for the past 12 years from 2008. Some Koreans show off having a meal with a Chinese ambassador who can converse in Korean. They often complain that non-Korea experts lack communication as an ambassador. Frankly, it is unclear how to please Korean sentiment. But one thing is clear.

Korea experts have more affection toward Korea than anyone else in the Chinese Foreign Ministry. Zhang Tingyan, Li Bin, Ning Fukui and Xing Haiming were such cases. Of course, a Chinese ambassador would work for China’s national interest. But Korea specialists care about Korea as well. The failure of a Chinese ambassador to Korea is a failure for Korea, too.