China-South Korea-Japan trilateral summit: Why India shouldn’t be concerned

A joint declaration issued following the trilateral summit between China, Japan and South held in Seoul talks about maintaining regional peace among a host of other issues... what was the significance of this summit? What are the implications for India? An expert explains to ETV Bharat.

New Delhi: With Seoul hosting this year’s China-South Korea-Japan Trilateral Summit, indications are that the three countries are trying to bring down temperatures in that part of the world. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President Yoon Sook Yeol attended the meeting following which a joint declaration was issued. The 38-point declaration called for peace and stability in Northeast Asia and the Korean Peninsula. During the meeting, China also urged Japan and South Korea to reject protectionism and uphold free trade. This was the ninth trilateral summit between China, Japan and South Korea and the first since 2019.

So, what was the significance of this year’s summit?

According to K Yhome, a Fellow at the Shillong-based Asian Confluence think tank, the joint declaration suggests that the three countries on May 28 are exploring ways to manage their relations in a way that is beneficial for the parties involved and also the wider region.

“This could be a diplomatic move by China and also Japan to bring some normalcy in the region,” Yhome told ETV Bharat.

China is in conflict with several Southeast Asian nations in the South China Sea with Taiwan over the island nation’s independence and with Japan on claims over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. Meanwhile, tensions continue in the Korean Peninsula with North Korea’s actions threatening both South Korea and Japan.

Referring to the joint declaration issued following the trilateral summit, Yhome said that the scope of cooperation the three countries talk about today is quite elaborate. “We need to read this in the context of the increasing US-China rivalry in the Indo-Pacific,” he said.

The US is leading several initiatives, including the Quad, which also includes India, Japan and Australia in the face of China’s belligerence in the Indo-Pacific. Recently, a new alliance called the SQUAD comprising the US, Australia, Japan and the Philippines was formed to maintain peace and security in the region.

However, according to Yhome, through the trilateral summit, Tokyo might be trying to send a signal to Beijing that whatever Japan is for security in the region doing is not necessarily targeting China.

“Tokyo is saying that it is willing to work with Beijing for security in the region,” he said.

For China, the intent of this summit could be the Taiwan issue. New Taiwanese President Lai Ching Te has been increasingly vocal about his country defending its independence from China. Beijing, too, conducted a series of naval drills around Taiwan after the new government assumed power in Taipei.

“Also, because of the US’ increasing role in Taiwan, it is China’s way of saying that it is not interested in conflict in the region,” Yhome said. “Both Japan and South Korea are key actors in that part of the world.”

Meanwhile, the Koreans are also worried about the developments in the Taiwan Straits. According to Yhome, South Korea hosted the summit to bring down the heat in the region. Seoul wants a cooperative framework and does not want to see conflicts in the region.

In December last year, South Korea unveiled a new Indo-Pacific strategy that observers say aligns with the strategies of the Quad. In its new strategy, South Korea pledged to bolster the regional rules-based order to protect freedom, democracy and human rights. The document expands on President Yoon’s previous promises to accept greater responsibility for defending democratic principles and is consistent with the national security strategies of the US and its allies. However, it held back from unambiguously defining the Chinese threat in the region to the same extent that Washington, New Delhi, Tokyo and Canberra have.

However, despite being a formal ally of the US under the 1953 Mutual Defence Treaty, South Korea has deep-rooted economic linkages with China, which is its largest trading partner with a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in place since 2015.

At the end of it all, Yhome said, the joint declaration is just a piece of document. “We will have to wait and see how it works out,” he said.

What are the implications of the trilateral summit for India?

The trilateral alliance has implications for maritime security in the Indo-Pacific region, a key area of interest for India. Collaboration among China, South Korea and Japan in maritime domain awareness, anti-piracy efforts and freedom of navigation operations influences the security environment in the region. India’s strategic interests are closely tied to maintaining a free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific.

India maintains strong bilateral relations with Japan and South Korea, while its relationship with China is more complex and marked by competition and cooperation.

However, according to Yhome, though the joint declaration talks about regional peace, it does not mean that it will have any direct implications on India-China bilateral ties. India, too, has two trilateral alliances in place – one with the US and Japan and another with Russia and China called RIC (Russia, India, and China).

“Today’s global issues are driven by such mini-laterals,” Yhome explained. “The RIC trilateral alliance doesn’t mean targeting Japan. Similarly, the India-US-Japan trilateral alliance doesn’t mean targeting China.”

At the end of it all though, the trilateral alliance between China, Japan and South Korea will not change the positions of India and Japan when it comes to ties with the US and the Quad in the Indo-Pacific.