{"id":2200464,"date":"2023-03-22T18:30:02","date_gmt":"2023-03-22T09:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2200464"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:07:52","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:07:52","slug":"yoons-southeast-asia-approach-continues-old-policies-but-still-lacks-clarity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/03\/yoons-southeast-asia-approach-continues-old-policies-but-still-lacks-clarity\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoon\u2019s Southeast Asia approach continues old policies, but still lacks clarity"},"content":{"rendered":"
South Korea\u2019s inaugural <\/span>Indo-Pacific Strategy<\/span><\/a> lists Southeast Asia as a regional priority for Seoul, but experts fear a lack of specifics in the new policy could spread the ROK\u2019s priorities too thin and force it to lose traction in an increasingly competitive region.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The strategy stresses that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region remains central to Seoul\u2019s foreign policy, serving as its second-largest trading partner and investment destination and the top travel destination and largest official development assistance (ODA) partner from South Korea\u2019s side.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe solidarity established through years of political and economic cooperation, as well as people-to-people and cultural exchanges, will serve as a strong foundation from which the ROK and ASEAN can deepen their collaboration towards their common objectives in the Indo-Pacific,\u201d <\/span>the brief says<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n ROK President <\/span>Yoon Suk-yeol attended the ASEAN summit<\/span><\/a> in November, where he pledged to ensure a \u201cfree, peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific region\u201d by working with other countries and regions, including ASEAN and East Timor. Seoul also proposed a new Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative (KASI) as the foundation for stronger relations.<\/span><\/p>\n A few weeks later, <\/span>South Korea and Vietnam<\/span><\/a> upgraded their relationship<\/span><\/a> to a \u201ccomprehensive strategic partnership,\u201d signaling the former\u2019s attempt to prioritize Southeast Asia.<\/span><\/p>\n Despite these grand ambitions, however, the new Indo-Pacific Strategy is \u201cbasically just a continuation\u201d of former president Moon Jae-in\u2019s New Southern Policy (NSP) covering Southeast Asia and India, Jeffrey Robertson, an associate professor of diplomatic studies at Seoul\u2019s Yonsei University, told <\/span>Korea Pro<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n Introduced in 2017<\/span><\/a> and expanded as the <\/span>New Southern Policy Plus<\/span><\/a> in 2020 to tackle emerging pandemic-era challenges, the NSP promoted mutually beneficial and sustainable trade and investment, cultural exchanges and infrastructure development and cooperation in security, health, education, and digital industries.<\/span><\/p>\n