Seoul and the Indo-Pacific Alliance Framework: Through an Indian Lens

Jagannath P. Panda
Introduction:
For long, South Korea has not fulfilled its middle power potential despite its economic and technological prowess. A large part of it is certainly due to the balancing required to offset the US-China rivalry and the inordinate stress on North Korea, but the resolve for greater diplomatic outreach has also been certainly lacking. Fortunately, the ascent of the new South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol has signaled a change in approach that has been (as of now) in line with the projected enthusiasm of Indo-Pacific partners. At the same time, Yoon’s recent overtures as “unilateral diplomacy” (i.e., overtly pro-US and anti-China) is seen critically, which is against national interests and harmful for the Northeast Asia security in the longer term.
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