{"id":2199124,"date":"2022-10-10T09:31:54","date_gmt":"2022-10-10T09:31:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2199124"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:11:29","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:11:29","slug":"multilateralism-key-for-south-korean-supply-chains-growing-arms-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/multilateralism-key-for-south-korean-supply-chains-growing-arms-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"Multilateralism key for South Korean supply chains, growing arms industry"},"content":{"rendered":"

South Korea has become an economic force in the Indo-Pacific region, exporting its goods to Asia and the world at <\/span>G20-level volumes<\/span><\/a> and thereby fueling the country\u2019s growth over the past half-century. It has been a beneficiary of globalization and a vocal proponent for it on the global stage.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, the COVID-19 pandemic pushed to the surface many <\/span>issues<\/span><\/a> related to international trade, converging geopolitics and economics in a way not seen before. A rising China, U.S.-China decoupling, the weaponization of tariffs and other trade restrictions as well as the spread of illiberalism all challenge the institutions that make South Korea a rich, prosperous country.<\/span><\/p>\n

Among Seoul\u2019s most burning questions in 2022 are whether the country can play a vital role in supply chain resiliency and whether defense cooperation with Wahington and others has a ceiling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The national and economic security of South Korea links directly to the risk associated with disruptions in supply chains. A crisis in one country can cripple the economy of another. One example is China\u2019s decision to slap <\/span>inspection certificates<\/span><\/a> on all fertilizer exports, truncating critical supplies such as urea and threatening <\/span>South Korea\u2019s transportation and energy<\/span><\/a> sectors.<\/span><\/p>\n

Seoul fully understands <\/span>the danger<\/span><\/a> of politicizing foreign businesses and investments. But the ROK\u2019s concentration of and reliance on manufacturing in one opaque country (China) exacerbates any disruptions to supplies and makes South Korea vulnerable to the political whims of Xi Jinping.<\/span><\/p>\n

Successive governments, including the <\/span>Yoon administration<\/span><\/a>, have <\/span>sought to address<\/span><\/a> this overt dependency through primarily <\/span>U.S.-led<\/span><\/a> trade institutions and mechanisms such as the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, Chip 4 alliance and so-called <\/span>friend-shoring<\/span><\/a> \u2014 or efforts to spread manufacturing within groups of friendly countries. Seoul also participates in multilateral platforms like the Global Supply Chain summit as a norm-influencer, shaping principles of transparency, diversification, security and sustainability in guiding a resilient supply chain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At the same time, South Korea can\u2019t entirely ditch China and has <\/span>subsequently worked<\/span><\/a> to \u201cstrengthen communication and dialogue for stable supply management\u201d within the Indo-Pacific. Seoul has also engaged with Southeast Asia in <\/span>bilateral<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>ASEAN-Plus Three format<\/span><\/a>, and expanded engagement with <\/span>Mongolia<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Australia<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Indonesia<\/span><\/a> specifically to address resilient critical mineral supply chains.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

An aerial view of Seoul on Aug. 24, 2022 | Image: Republic of Korea Flickr<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

A CRITICAL LINK<\/b><\/p>\n

South Korea has also become one of the <\/span>fastest-growing defense exporters<\/span><\/a> in the world. The defense cooperation with \u201c<\/span>like-minded countries<\/span><\/a>\u201d is based, it seems, on two factors: maintaining strategic stability and economic considerations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The South\u2019s likely strategy is to develop strategic relations by increasing stakes in other countries\u2019 defense security calculations. South Korea\u2019s defense cooperation manifests in <\/span>joint<\/span><\/a> defense research and innovation, <\/span>military exercises<\/span><\/a>, capacity building, and defense <\/span>exports<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

South Korea is well-placed as a <\/span>techno-democracy<\/span><\/a> with highly skilled manufacturing to partner with countries in the Indo-Pacific region. Substantial defense cooperation exists, with countries like <\/span>India<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Indonesia<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Philippines<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Australia<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>New Zealand<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Thailand<\/span><\/a> focusing on either defense exports or joint defense programs.<\/span><\/p>\n

The challenge remains in ensuring that the geopolitics doesn\u2019t necessarily cross geoeconomics in the region and hamper growth prospects. South Korean policymakers can shore up supply chains by focusing on information and communications technology, securing long-term critical mineral inputs from a variety of sources and forging trust with the private sector by incentivizing friend-shoring and nearshoring, or moving operations to nearby countries.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Seoul may also see returns through greater engagement with multilateral groupings like the Quad, the highest-profile institutional mechanism addressing maritime security in the region.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS<\/b><\/p>\n

South Korea\u2019s attempt to isolate security and economics from one another is proving more and more difficult. It is unlikely that a balanced approach like the \u201cstrategic ambiguity\u201d pursued by former ROK President Moon Jae-in can get South Korea where it wants to go concerning supply chains and defense industry interlinks.<\/span><\/p>\n

Untether as much as it might, South Korea cannot change who its neighbors are. China\u2019s security and economic concerns will always challenge Seoul\u2019s autonomy. This constraint gives little geopolitical or geoeconomic space for South Korea to maneuver within the binaries of a U.S.-China rivalry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But South Korea can maximize its position and increase the probability of win-win scenarios through multilateralism and by buying-in to multipolarity. Seoul may continue its strategic shift toward the U.S. following tactical adjustments that reflect concerns of a regional power like China while embracing strategic relations with regional powers like India, Australia and Japan at all levels to strengthen supply chain resilience and defense cooperation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Edited by Arius Derr<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Business & Economy<\/span><\/a>Inter-Korean & Foreign Relations<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

South Korea has become an economic force in the Indo-Pacific region, exporting its goods to Asia and the world at G20-level volumes and thereby fueling the country\u2019s growth over the past half-century. It has been a beneficiary of globalization and a vocal proponent for it on the global stage. However, the COVID-19 pandemic pushed to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7797,"featured_media":2199125,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[24,28],"yoast_head":"\nMultilateralism key for South Korean supply chains, growing arms industry - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/10\/multilateralism-key-for-south-korean-supply-chains-growing-arms-industry\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Multilateralism key for South Korean supply chains, growing arms industry - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Korea has become an economic force in the Indo-Pacific region, exporting its goods to Asia and the world at G20-level volumes and thereby fueling the country\u2019s growth over the past half-century. 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