Opinion | Why South Korea’s Quad overtures are falling on deaf ears

South Korea’s new president has ambitions for his country as a ‘global pivotal state’ and is courting closer defence ties with the West

But the Biden administration is wary of letting South Korea join the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, which could aggravate relations with China

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Published: 11:15am, 23 Jul 2022

In an essay published in February, South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol said: “This is a moment of change and flux in international politics. It calls for clarity and boldness, and for a commitment to principles.”

A presidential candidate at the time, Yoon argued that his country should become no less than a “global pivotal state”, which advances “freedom, peace, and prosperity through liberal democratic values and substantial cooperation” with like-minded powers.

When he was inaugurated in May, he noted South Korea’s emergence as one of the world’s leading economies and called on his country to “take on a greater role befitting our stature as a global leader”. He said South Korea “must take on an even greater role in expanding freedom and human rights not just for ourselves but also for others. The international community expects us to do so.”

In a major departure from his predecessor’s cautious foreign policy, Yoon has courted closer defence ties with the West while signalling a tougher stance against North Korea and China. Last month, he attended a Nato summit, where he spoke of closer cooperation among democratic powers from the Atlantic to the Indo-Pacific.

He also supports the Biden administration’s Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and has made it clear that South Korea would like to be included in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad – alongside Australia, India, Japan and the United States.

Yoon’s tilt towards the West is significant when some in Washington are calling for the establishment of a “Pacific Nato” to counter a resurgent China. So far, however, the Biden administration has resisted adding South Korea to the Quad, perhaps to avoid escalating the cold war in Asia.

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