Commentary: Washington and
Seoul: Drifting Further Apart?
It was a mind-wrenching scene on the last frontier
of the Cold War. As six nations squared off for a diplomatic sparring match over
North Korean nuclear arms in Beijing at the end of August, a competition of a
different sort was under way in Daegu, South Korea. There, 11,000 students
gathered for the World University Games, including competitors from South and
North Korea. But there was no rancor. When a North Korean cheering squad started
up a chant of "We are one," students from both ends of the divided peninsula
joined in lustily. And during a North Korea-U.S. volleyball match, fans booed
the Americans and cheered North Korea.
Maybe U.S. negotiators should
attend games like these. They show how differently North Korea is viewed in
South Korea these days. American policymakers, of course, already know that many
young South Koreans feel resentful of the U.S. and protective of their North
Korean cousins. Such sentiments helped elect activist Roh Moo Hyun President
last December. Still, the U.S. thought it had won a victory when it finally
forced Kim Jong Il to accept the six-party talks, which included the two Koreas,
Japan, Russia, China, and the U.S.
Instead, the talks, which ended on
Aug. 29, just reinforced anti-American sentiment, with critics in Seoul
denouncing the U.S. for its stubbornness. The North said it would give up its
nuclear ambitions if the U.S. would at the same time guarantee it against
attack. The U.S., however, refuses to even talk about concessions until
Pyongyang abandons its bomb program. South Korean officials think Washington
should be more flexible.
However naive it may seem, many South Koreans
have lost their fear of the Stalinist regime in Pyongyang and embraced Dear
Leader Kim as a partner in reunification. To these doves, it's the hard-liners
in the Bush Administration who are blocking a diplomatic solution to the nuclear
crisis. Roh, while trying to work with Washington, also insists on maintaining
economic cooperation with the North despite the nuclear issue, whatever the U.S.
thinks.
There's another twist: Seoul's new appreciation of China, its big
trading partner. The South Korean media played up a Sept. 1 comment made by
China's chief delegate to the talks, Vice-Foreign Minister Wang Yi, when he
declared that U.S. intransigence is "the main problem we are facing." For South
Korean youths with no memory of the Korean War, China is seen as a cultural
partner and promoter of regional peace, while the U.S. is the
bully.
Seoul's growing ties with Beijing and Pyongyang present Washington
with a dilemma. Caving in to the North's demands seems unthinkable. Ignoring the
wishes of its ally in the South also seems impossible. Either way, the
U.S.-Korean alliance is changing profoundly.
