SOUTH KOREA: Lee Holds First Call w/NATO Sec-Gen, Looks To Deepen Defence Links

(MNI) London - President Lee Jae-myung held his first phone call with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte earlier today, where the two discussed the prospect of deepening the partnership on defence between Seoul and the Atlantic alliance, according to the president's office. As one of NATO's 'Indo-Pacific Four', alongside Japan, Australia and New Zealand, Lee was invited to the NATO summit in late June. However, he did not attend. 

• The Quincy Institute of Responsible Statecraft posits that Lee's foreign policy "appears less attached to the idea of value-based alignment. [...] Lee has stressed that pursuing values, though important, cannot come at the cost of unconditionally subordinating South Korea’s national interests. This perspective reflects a sober recognition that South Korea shares many, but not all, interests and priorities with its U.S. ally and other like-minded democracies."
• The prospect of South Korea moving towards NATO membership (or at least a deeper relationship) has drawn criticism from Beijing.
• Speaking at the NATO public forum last week, Rutte said “We also see how China is reconstituting itself. We see what China, North Korea, and Iran are doing by supporting Russia’s war efforts in the war against Ukraine,” provoking Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun to respond, "If NATO truly cares about security in Europe and the world, it should stop fueling the fire and encouraging confrontation,” calling the comments “yet another excuse by NATO to drastically increase military spending to have a presence in the Asia-Pacific region.”