Can Seoul count on Beijing’s commitment to Korean reunification?
South Korean analyst Sung Ki-young says major powers are more likely to support incremental steps for peace rather than a sudden shift
Sung Ki-young, chief research fellow at the Institute for National Security Strategy, told the Korean Peninsula Peace Forum on Wednesday that both China and the United States were reluctant to rapidly or radically alter peace and stability on the peninsula, meaning major powers were more likely to support incremental steps than any sudden shift.
He said international players preferred “a more step-by-step approach” towards peace and the long-stalled prospect of reunification between the two Koreas.
In that context, Sung said China was “not 100 per cent reliable” when it came to its role in reunification, given Beijing’s preference for stability as a constraint on how far it would be willing to go.
“If China locks the pipeline, North Korea will not be able to survive,” said Sung, who previously served as director general for unification policy at South Korea’s Ministry of Reunification.