Earlier this week, officials from the United States and the Republic of Korea (ROK) conceded that the latter could “easily be dragged” into the Taiwan crisis if tensions escalate with or without the over 28,500 US troops based in the peninsula.

The fact alone that Seoul is located near the disputing China and Taiwan, not to mention its archnemesis North Korea’s close ties with Beijing, already places ROK in an unfavorable situation.

In an interview with CNN, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol proclaimed to strengthen closer ties with the US in expanding “freedom” and sovereignty. However, it wasn’t clear whether it would send its armed forces should China attack Taiwan, as this could also trigger “provocation” with Pyongyang—thus urging to deal with the latter first.

“In the case of military conflict around Taiwan, there would be increased possibility of North Korean provocation,” Yoon said on Sunday. “Therefore, in that case, the top priority for Korea and the US-Korea alliance on the Korean Peninsula would be based on our robust defense posture. We must deal with the North Korean threat first.”

North Korea has long maintained ties with China, which means it could either coordinate an attack or use the ongoing tensions to further its own military objectives. Furthermore, it has previously expressed support for Beijing’s claims over Taiwan and accused Washington of attempting to establish an “Asian NATO” that would bring crises such as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict to Asia.

CNN Interview with South Korean President Yoon
(Screenshot from CNN)

Since the brewing tension began, debates on whether South Korea should be involved have been circulating at home and abroad, tackling how Seoul would have to “play any direct or indirect role” if a conflict arose—with some saying it could find itself on the literal front lines.

During the interview, Yoon also said it would not be appropriate to ask the US to fulfill its security obligations first in the country as “both the Korean Peninsula and Taiwan are very important” to the superpower ally.

The US and ROK have long since had a mutual defense compact since the Korean War that broke out in the early 1950s, in which the latter became a host to thousands of US armed forces.