South Koreans are upset at not being included in the trilateral talks between North Korea, the United States and China in Beijing to try to resolve the North's nuclear problem. As the South's strongest ally, the US failed to aggressively push for it to have a seat in the crucial negotiations, which disappointed many South Koreans. North Korea, which has received generous aid from the South in recent years, demanded the exclusion of delegates from Seoul, arguing the nuclear issue is a bilateral matter between the US and the North.
Southerners, particularly officials from Seoul, felt betrayed by the North, which has been calling for inter-Korean co-operation in resolving various security issues on the peninsula.
It was with that feeling of betrayal that several South Korean officials flew to Pyongyang this week for regular high-level talks. As if to make up for the loss of face, they promised tough talk, saying they would need big concessions from their northern counterparts.
Some 50 hours later, they returned to Seoul, but not with what they had promised. The final statement contained a terse clause about the nuclear issue. But it was ambiguous, saying the two sides agreed to work together for the resolution of the nuclear problem on the Korean peninsula. Overall, it was not much different from what the two Koreas had agreed previously. Again, South Korea's hopes for taking the lead in the nuclear process were dashed, providing a harsh wake-up call. Besides feeling betrayed and disappointed, they had to do some painful soul-searching, and came to an equally painful conclusion - that South Korea is still a minor player in international efforts to deal with Northeast Asian security matters.
This has been true for decades. With its defence treaty with the US, South Korea relies heavily on America for security and is limited in its ability to voice opinions even on defence matters.
For that reason, the North still refuses to recognise the South as a truly sovereign and legitimate regime - the main reason for its persistent attempts to bypass South Korea and talk directly to the US. After all, the 1953 Korean war armistice agreement was signed between the North, the US-led United Nations and China.
