| The 24th Winter Olympics to be held in Beijing, China is set to kick off on February 4, 2022. © Reuters=News1 © News1 Reporter Jeong Yun-young |
It is noteworthy as reports continue that the US allies are considering a ‘diplomatic boycott’ in which government officials, etc., do not participate in the Beijing Winter Olympics, which is scheduled to be held in February next year. The future moves of Korea and Japan, which are geographically close to China, are also of interest.
According to the Asahi Shimbun, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, at a press conference on the 25th, when asked about the Japanese government’s response to the Beijing Winter Olympics, said, “At an appropriate time, we take into account all circumstances and make a judgment, but nothing has been decided at this time.” “He said.
“At this point, the US government’s response has not been announced,” he said. US President Joe Biden had a summit meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the 18th and answered a reporter’s question whether the US was considering a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics.
However, the Biden administration has not yet made an official announcement on the diplomatic boycott, and there are speculations that a final decision will be made as early as the end of this month. In that case, there is an observation that Japan, a key ally of the United States, is highly likely to follow the US decision.
In addition, Minister Hayashi was asked to visit China in a phone call with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the 18th, and member of the House of Councilors, Masahisa Sato, who serves as the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Liberal Democratic Party, is ordering a cautious response, saying that it will send the wrong message to the outside world.
In a series of circumstances, it seems that China has begun preliminary work on Japan. In addition to Wang Yi’s request for Minister Hayashi’s visit to China, the Chinese government emphasized that there was ‘China’s support’ for the Tokyo Olympics, which ended in August. In fact, they are claiming that there is something that should be returned to the Japanese side.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhao Lijian said in a regular briefing on the 25th, “China has already fully supported Japan’s hosting of the Tokyo Olympics,” and emphasized that “Japan must have basic trust.”
He also expressed his firm opposition to the politicization of the sport and the blasphemy of the Olympic spirit.
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| Zhao Lijian, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China. |
So far, the countries that are considering diplomatic boycotts known through foreign media are mainly Western countries. The United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand are mentioned.
The countries mentioned are the participating countries of the security alliance ‘Ocus’ (US, UK, and Australia participating) and the confidential information sharing alliance ‘Five Eyes’ (US, UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand). As these countries are cooperating with the United States on issues of common interest, they are likely to make the same choice if the Biden administration finally decides on a diplomatic boycott.
It is evaluated that Japan, a participating country of the unofficial consultative body ‘Quad’ (USA, Japan, India, Australia), is highly likely to join the sympathetic atmosphere of its allies.
In addition, some observers suggest that South Korea may feel a burden if the boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics is made public through the ‘Democracy Summit’ to be held on the 9th and 10th of next month. He said that he could fall into a dilemma over whether to cooperate with the ROK-U.S. alliance or a ‘strategic cooperative partnership’ with China for the Olympics.
Park Won-gon, a professor at Ewha Womans University, said, “The possibility cannot be ruled out that the United States will make an issue of the Olympic boycott in connection with the Democracy Summit.
Professor Park said, “If the US strongly drives, it can be a burden for President Moon Jae-in to go in a situation where Kim Jong-un, the general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, is unlikely to come. The situation can be complicated, such as whether to choose
ntiger@news1.kr
