{"id":2198874,"date":"2022-09-05T10:38:38","date_gmt":"2022-09-05T10:38:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2198874"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:11:40","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:11:40","slug":"yoon-suk-yeol-rejects-three-nos-deal-with-china-in-words-but-not-actions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/yoon-suk-yeol-rejects-three-nos-deal-with-china-in-words-but-not-actions\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoon Suk-yeol rejects three nos deal with China in words, but not actions"},"content":{"rendered":"
Even as they recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of bilateral ties, South Korea and China couldn\u2019t avoid clashing over one of the major points of friction in their relationship.<\/span><\/p>\n Following a meeting between their top diplomats last month, China\u2019s foreign ministry reiterated its support for the so-called three nos agreement, under which the previous Moon administration reportedly promised that Seoul would not install additional THAAD missile interceptors, not join a U.S.-led missile defense network and not enter into a trilateral alliance with Washington and Tokyo.<\/span><\/p>\n The Yoon administration responded by stating that the deal is not a formal agreement and that the issue of whether it deploys more THAAD batteries is <\/span>not up for negotiation<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n The airing of differences did not exactly come as a surprise, as South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol has been quite vocal about THAAD and the three nos deal since the campaign trail. But it\u2019s all the more notable in light of the fact that, at least so far, he has not taken any steps that would constitute a violation of the deal itself.<\/span><\/p>\n What this suggests is that Yoon’s opposition to the three nos remains largely rhetorical. But words matter, and Seoul\u2019s stance is still likely to impact its relations with Beijing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The key will be whether Yoon can stick to its message on the three nos without causing a deterioration in its ties with China. While Seoul has options, they each have associated risks, and it will have to thread the need to maintain good ties with Beijing even as it hews closer to Washington.<\/span><\/p>\n WORDS VS. ACTIONS<\/b><\/p>\n Both the Moon and Yoon administrations have argued that the three nos amount to nothing more than South Korea deciding not to do something, and China announcing it. <\/span>Nevertheless, conservatives, including Yoon, fear that Moon painted South Korea into a corner through his public announcement.<\/span><\/p>\n Yoon was particularly outspoken against the three nos during his campaign, once posting the short message \u201cadditional THAAD deployment\u201d on <\/span>Facebook<\/span><\/a> without elaborating. He has also sought to reinforce <\/span>trilateral security cooperation<\/span><\/a> with the U.S. and Japan.<\/span><\/p>\n In addition, the ROK president has adopted the so-called <\/span>Three-Axis<\/span><\/a> defense system, which includes deploying a South Korean missile defense system and more THAAD interceptors to cover the Seoul metropolitan area.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Even so, nothing that Yoon has done so far actually violates the three nos as China appears to understand them. While he reinforced the installation of a THAAD battery already agreed upon, he has not taken any steps to deploy additional interceptors, including near the capital as he previously announced.<\/span><\/p>\n There are also no signs of South Korea joining a U.S.-led missile defense network either. Yoon\u2019s plans for a Three-Axis system rely on ROK missile defenses, which does not violate the three nos. And in any case, these plans were first formulated under Moon, albeit under a different name.<\/span><\/p>\n A trilateral alliance is not on the horizon either. Yoon has agreed to resume <\/span>joint military exercises<\/span><\/a> with Japan and the US, but this is merely a return to pre-2017 policy. There have been <\/span>trilateral discussions<\/span><\/a> about working together in the Indo-Pacific generally, but talks have only revolved around trilateral cooperation, not an alliance.<\/span><\/p>\n These moves may together be part of a deliberate strategy to allow Yoon to look tough on China while maintaining economic ties. It could also be that he intended to implement policies that run counter to the three nos but became warier of the potential costs once in office.<\/span><\/p>\n