The biden administration's response to North Korea was confronted by South Korea's judgment as “an opportunity for US-China cooperation” and the US judgment that “the US-China cannot cooperate”.
Moon Jeong-in, chairman of the Sejong Institute, who served as a presidential special report, said in an interview with the Hankyoreh on the 8th, “If the voice of Japan grows, cooperation between the three countries of Korea, the United States, and Japan may become difficult. It can also provide an opportunity for the company.”
In a discussion at Georgetown University on the 9th, Marcus Galloskas, former US National Intelligence Service (DNI) North Korean officer, said, “It will be difficult to expect cooperation between the US and China on the North Korean issue for the time being. The situation in 2017, when we thought there would be more opportunities to cooperate, will not return, and North Korea is also aware of this.”
On the other hand, Chairman Moon said, “It is not wise for the Biden administration to start from nothing now. Regarding “President Moon Jae-in's remarks on the March 1st”, saying, “The June 12, 2018 Singapore-North Korea Joint Statement, which contains “normalization of North Korea-US relations, a permanent peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, and complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” should be taken as a starting point.
“The remarks to revitalize Korea-US-Japan relations by restoring Korea-Japan cooperation is a response to the United States and an order for Japan to engage in constructive dialogue. We will use the Tokyo Olympics as a role model for the February 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics as an opportunity to improve relations between North Korea-Japan, North Korea and North Korea.”
In the previous discussion at Georgetown University, a senior researcher at the Center for Strategic International Studies (CSIS) said, “The cooperation between the United States and China on North Korea sanctions has been ambiguous since 2018. "It will be very difficult to restore the previous level of sanctions cooperation between the two countries," said the Biden administration's Indo-Pacific strategy, Quad and Quad Plus, saying, "It is to have an identity as a common interest among the participating countries rather than to suppress China." We can expand it a bit, but we will continue to be very reluctant to participate.”
Voice of the United States (VOA), who relayed the discussions at Georgetown University, said, "It seems that South Korea is very reluctant to engage in activities outside the Korean peninsula, especially China, that cause hostilities for activities other than necessary activities with North Korea." "It is reluctance to side with the United States against China," it reported.
Chairman Moon said, “The Biden government has repeatedly emphasized the importance of Japan along with strengthening the alliance. Japan insists on “first CVID (completely irreversible denuclearization)” (omitted) and insists on stopping test firing of all ballistic missiles, including short-range missiles, unlike the United States. If the voice of Japan grows, it may become difficult to co-operate with the three countries,” he said. “Peace on the Korean peninsula is possible only when the North Korean nuclear issue is resolved, but cooperation from China is absolutely necessary. In the end, the US-China relationship should be good. Paradoxically, in the process of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and creating a peace regime, it could also provide an opportunity for US-China cooperation.”
On the 7th, former Unification Minister Kim Yeon-cheol said, “The Korean diplomatic task is to separate the Korean peninsula issue under the US-China strategic competition.” “If the US checks against China in detail, the strategic interests of both North Korea and China become closer, and North Korea's attitude toward denuclearization negotiations becomes rigid Very likely. (Omitted) The later the intervention period is, the more difficult it is to resolve,” he said in the Gyeonghyang Shinmun, saying, “Intervention in South Korea through the early separation of North Korea from the US and China.”