U.S.-China relations have continued to deteriorate since Joe Biden took office, rather than easing. Many countries caught between the two powers face the dilemma of being forced to choose sides. South Korean President Moon Jae-in has avoided angering Beijing, but anti-China sentiment is spreading in the country. Hong Kong media earlier published an analysis of the growing anti-China sentiment in South Korea, which could worsen relations between Seoul and Beijing.
The report, which was based on the 500,000 people who logged on to Cheong Wa Dae’s online petition system to oppose the establishment of a Chinatown in Gangwon Province, far exceeding the 200,000 threshold at which the government must respond, pointed out that the South Korean public’s antipathy toward the Chinese Communist Party has become increasingly contradictory to the Moon Jae-in administration, which has been trying to maintain friendly relations with Beijing.
A survey released last week by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs showed that when South Koreans were asked to rate their opinion of the CCP on a scale of 0 to the lowest and 10 to the highest, their average rating of the CCP was 3.1, only slightly higher than the 2.8 given to North Korea and even lower than the 3.2 given to Japan.
A poll conducted by conservative media outlet Dong-A Ilbo last month showed that nearly 53 percent of South Koreans support South Korea joining the Biden administration’s anti-Beijing campaign, and among young people in their 20s, the percentage is even higher at 66 percent.
Joo Jae-woo, a professor of Chinese foreign policy at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, noted that the younger generation of South Koreans grew up in a contentious environment with the Chinese Communist Party. They are sensitive to all kinds of pollution coming from China. The recent epidemic and cultural controversies have added to their distrust of the Chinese Communist Party.
They grew up in a totally unfriendly environment with the Chinese Communist Party,” says Jae Woo Chu. Since they were born, they themselves have had more negative experiences with the CCP than positive ones, such as PM2.5.”
Zhu Zaiyu said, “People think the CCP is a bully.”
This anti-China sentiment is also reflected in the ballot box. Opposition parties have accused Moon of kowtowing to the Chinese Communist Party. Last week, the ruling party led by Moon Jae-in lost the mayoral elections in the cities of Seoul and Busan. This adds to the uncertainty of next year’s presidential election in South Korea.
Jung Jae-heung, a permanent researcher at the Sejong Institute in Seoul, said that South Korea’s current ruling elite grew up in opposition to the U.S.-backed dictatorship and generally have a socialist ideology, anti-American leanings and a progressive worldview; however, the new generation has a very different worldview.
Jaehyung Jung noted that next year’s presidential election in South Korea will likely bring great policy changes.
Lim Jin-hee, a professor at Wonkwang University’s School of Korea-China Relations, noted that relations between the two countries will inevitably be shaken.
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