When the Lee Jae-myung administration took office, some reacted skeptically to its foreign and security policy slogan of "national interest-focused pragmatic diplomacy." The concern was that it represented a value worth pursuing but lacked specific philosophy or strategy. One year later, observers say the administration has achieved considerable results in restoring relations with major countries and expanding its diplomatic space.
With ally the United States, significant outcomes emerged from the first summit held in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, last October. Chung Ku-yeon, a political science professor at Kangwon National University, said, "Consultations with the US side went well on issues that our government has long pursued, including nuclear-powered submarines and nuclear power cooperation." She added, however, that "security issues such as nuclear submarines and wartime operational control require all-around diplomacy toward the US and should not be rushed."
Korea-China relations are in a phase of recovery. Chinese President Xi Jinping made a state visit to Korea in October last year for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit and a Korea-China summit in Gyeongju, his first such visit in 11 years. President Lee Jae-myung also visited China as a state guest this January, the first Korean president to do so in nine years. The two sides announced 20 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) and a currency swap agreement worth 70 trillion won.
Experts say Korea-China relations should move beyond restoration toward institutionalization. Kang Jun-young, a professor at the Graduate School of International and Area Studies at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, said, "It is positive that the strained Korea-China relationship has been normalized," but added, "Now that one year has passed since the government's launch, it is necessary to shift from event-centered diplomacy to roadmap-centered diplomacy." He stressed, "Along with regularizing summits, ministerial, vice-ministerial, and working-level consultative bodies should be systematically operated, and priority tasks and follow-up schedules in each field should be concretized."
Amid intensifying instability in the international order, the Lee administration has also focused on diversifying its diplomacy. Over the past year since taking office, President Lee has conducted more than 90 summit meetings with leaders of more than 50 countries. The administration has declared a strengthening of substantive cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and European Union (EU) countries.
In contrast, inter-Korean relations remain the most difficult task. Relations between the two Koreas, which became strained after the 2018 US-North Korea summit broke down, deteriorated further under the previous government and led to North Korea's "two hostile states" stance. The current administration has issued conciliatory messages, including hinting at the possibility of adjusting Korea-US joint military exercises, but has failed to elicit a response from North Korea.
