How U.S.-China tensions go away international locations like South Korea caught within the center

GYEONGJU, South Korea — President Trump sat down with President Xi Jinping of China on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Financial Cooperation conference (APEC) in South Korea final week.

The leaders of the world’s greatest economies met on the airport in Busan, an hour’s drive away from the APEC host metropolis of Gyeongju, for simply an hour and 40 minutes.

Regardless of the brevity of the much-anticipated rendezvous — and Trump’s absence in the primary APEC Financial Leaders’ Summit — the international locations’ commerce dispute loomed giant over the occasion.

On Saturday, representatives from APEC’s 21 member international locations acknowledged challenges going through the worldwide commerce system and provide chains in a joint declaration. They known as for “a trade and investment environment that promotes resilience and benefits for all.”

Tensions on present at APEC

Because the chair of this 12 months’s APEC, President Lee Jae Myung of South Korea advocated for the multilateral discussion board’s function regardless of “different values and objectives” amongst its members. “The goal is to identify common challenges that can be discussed together and to maximize cooperation within possible scope,” Lee mentioned.

However some specialists query how viable and concrete such cooperation may be when the U.S. is shifting from a supporter of commerce liberalism to an more and more protectionist and transactional place.

It was “because of benign U.S. leadership” and “a clear lack of security concerns” within the post-Chilly Warfare period that APEC may set the agenda for the worldwide commerce regime, says Jeffrey Robertson, an affiliate professor of Diplomatic Research at Yonsei College in Seoul.

Reworking the establishment to mirror the brand new international order is tough for comparatively small gamers within the area, he provides, “because they’re caught between the United States and China.”

President Donald Trump, left, and Chinese language President Xi Jinping shake palms earlier than their assembly at Gimhae Worldwide Airport in Busan, South Korea, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025.

Mark Schiefelbein/AP/AP

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Mark Schiefelbein/AP/AP

Korea: between China and the U.S.

Like many APEC members, South Korea’s balancing act between the U.S. and China has been put to check.

Its relationship with China suffered in 2016 when South Korea determined to host a U.S. missile protection system often called THAAD. China retaliated with measures aimed on the nation’s tourism, retail and leisure industries — a lot of that are nonetheless in impact.

Although China stays the most important importer of South Korean items, it might quickly be outpaced by the U.S. In response to 2024 information from the Korea Worldwide Commerce Affiliation, China’s purchases have been forward of the U.S. by lower than one proportion level, down from almost 15 factors a decade in the past.

South Koreans more and more see the U.S. as crucial nation for his or her nation’s economic system, along with safety, surveys present. Throughout an August go to to Washington, President Lee declared that South Korea’s “U.S. for security, China for economy” strategy is over.

The tariff deal finalized this week between Washington and Seoul is more likely to additional join the allies’ economies. In return for a lowered tariff on vehicles and auto elements, South Korea agreed to speculate 350 billion {dollars} within the U.S. over a interval of at the least 10 years.

China and Korea’s rising rivalry

In distinction, China and South Korea have grown more and more at odds as China’s technological development accelerated. As soon as a producing subcontractor of South Korean firms, China has now develop into their international rival in key industries like EV and electronics.

Towards this backdrop, Koreans’ sentiment towards China is souring, notably amongst youthful generations. There have been anti-China rallies in downtown Seoul in current months, the place protesters chanted racist slurs and made unsubstantiated claims of Chinese language inference in South Korean politics. Some marched in Gyeongju this week, chanting “CCP [Chinese Communist Party] out.”

These tensions have been on present at APEC, the place South Korea’s President Lee met with Chinese language President Xi. Earlier than that assembly, the Chinese language ambassador to Korea, Dai Bing, warned of “regression” within the bilateral relations.

Moreover, Chinese language overseas ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun known as on the U.S. and South Korea to “earnestly fulfill their nuclear non-proliferation obligations, and do what is conducive to regional peace and stability.” That assertion got here in response to President Trump’s current approval of Seoul’s push for a nuclear-powered submarine. Individually, earlier in October, China imposed sanctions on 5 U.S. subsidiaries of Hanwha Ocean, a South Korean shipbuilder that owns the primary shipyards in Philadelphia.

At their bilateral summit, Lee and Xi have been each constructive about their international locations’ relations, reaffirming their dedication to continued, secure financial cooperation. Lee’s nationwide safety advisor Wi Sung-lac known as the assembly a “comprehensive restoration” of relations.

Nevertheless, there have been tensions under the floor. Wi Sung-lac revealed no speedy progress on the lingering sanctions over THAAD, and sidestepped giving a direct reply on the submarine difficulty. When requested concerning the current sanctions on Hanwha Ocean, he mentioned he anticipated it to be resolved when the U.S.-China commerce dispute is resolved.