Diplomatic Competition between US and China for Pacific Islands – Korea’s Plan to Cooperate with Pacific Island Nations

The Pacific Islands are rich in fishery resources and have high military and geopolitical value, so the United States and China are recently engaged in diplomatic competition.

We are also expanding our influence through the Indo-Pacific Strategy, and at the first summit between Korea and Pacific Islands at the end of this month, various ways to cooperate, including Japan’s contaminated water, will be discussed.

This is reporter Shin Hyun-joon’s report.

[기자]

The Pacific Islands are 14 island nations and two territories in Australia, New Zealand and France located in the central, western and south Pacific Oceans.

Although it has a small population, it has an exclusive economic zone that accounts for nearly 14% of the world’s area, and is rich in fishery resources and rare mineral resources, accounting for 70% of tuna catches.

Because of such abundant resources and geopolitical value, the United States and China are competing for leadership, such as high-level visits one after another, increasing embassies, or signing security agreements.

We also define the Pacific Islands as key partners in the Indo-Pacific Strategy, which is why they are exerting numerical influence in international elections.

[박영규 / 주피지 한국대사 : 올해 중요한 목표 중 하나가 부산 엑스포를 유치하는 건데, BIE(국제박람회기구) 회원국 중에 10개국이 태평양 도서국에 있습니다.]

At the end of this month, the government will invite the leaders of 18 Pacific Island countries to Seoul to hold the first Korea-Thailand Summit.

In particular, the issue of contaminated water in Fukushima, Japan is expected to come to the table at this summit.

Island countries take a hardline stance because their fishery resources can be contaminated by the discharge of contaminated water and they have experienced damage from nuclear tests in the Pacific Ocean.

[헨리 푸나 / 태양평도서국포럼 사무총장 : 이러한 과정의 목표는 과학적 근거를 바탕으로 오염수 방류가 안전하다는 상호 간의 합의와 이해를 하는 것입니다.]

Poona drew the line that while Marshall Islands experts are currently involved in monitoring IAEA verification, not all island states support IAEA verification.

In addition, as Kiribati and Tuvalu are projected to be submerged within several decades as sea levels rise, the issue of climate change, which island countries feel a sense of crisis, is expected to be discussed as a major agenda at the summit.

This is YTN Shin Hyeon-jun.

Video coverage: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Joint Reporting Foundation
Video Editing: Yongjun Yoon
Graphics: Kwon Bo-hee

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