South Korean President Lee Myung-bak kicked off a three-day visit to China yesterday.
Although this president has paid more visits to China than any of his predecessors, his administration has witnessed the most complicated ties between the two neighbors in a long time.
As 2012 marks the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, authorities on both sides may want to warm up bilateral ties. However, the people in both two countries do not seem very interested in doing so.
The "strategic partnership" between the two neighbors does not seem to deserve this title at times. Many ordinary South Koreans hold a negative China view, and vice versa. Despite a more than $200 billion trade volume, public opinion is roused as soon as a small friction arises.
The two countries surely want to strengthen strategic ties. However, both public stances and Korean Peninsula dynamics restrain the attitudes of Beijing and Seoul. Directly or indirectly, the US return to Asia has also exerted pressures on this geopolitical landscape.
China relatively holds a stable attitude toward South Korea. But in the eyes of South Korea, the basic tone of diplomatic ties between Beijing and Seoul is checked by that between Beijng and Pyongyang. They hope Beijing will support Seoul unconditionally. This is impractical.
South Korea destabilizes bilateral ties in a more direct way. In December, the alleged stabbing of a South Korean coast guard by a Chinese fisherman left South Korean media fuming.
Meanwhile, China's failure in unconditionally condemning the North, as South Korean public opinion requires whenever the two Koreas clash, is seen as a betrayal of the Beijing-Seoul partnership.
Recently, Seoul's anxieties toward the new leadership in North Korea may have reinforced these doubts toward China.
South Korea is increasingly aware of using its ties with the US to turn the heat up on Beijing. In fact, it is impossible for China to target South Korea when engaging in diplomacy with any other country.
South Korea-China ties have fallen low. After several tense moments, it becomes clearer that some requirements by the South Koreans go too far for China to possibly meet them.
The two countries do not have major conflicts of interest, and still benefit from each other's prosperity. As long as they show due respect to each other, they can remain friendly despite any spats.
We wish Lee a successful and fruitful visit to China.
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