21세기 한미전략동맹의 군사적 측면: 가치동맹 구현을 위한 과제

Military Aspect of the 21st Century ROK-U.S. Strategic Alliance: Tasks for Value-Based Alliance Partnership

The international order in the 21st century is often said to be the complex network. In such an international order, Korea must pursue networked diplomacy and coalition with the nations with similar institutions and values. Network is a kind of an open order. If a state is excluded from the global network and stick to nationalistic view, state's capabilities are constrained and can not benefit from the full advantage of globalization. Korea must belong to the leading coalition of the world order, which consists of nations with similar values and institutions. The United States is at the center of such coalition, and it is hard to imagine an alternative future without Korea-US alliance in the foreseeable future. Korea is a valuable partner for the United States in building a value-based coalition. Korea can also benefit from upgraded ROK-US alliance in shaping a favorable international environment in Northeast Asia. In a fluid regional order of Northeast Asia, Korea can contain China through ROK-US-Japan collaboration, as well as check Japan through ROK-US-China cooperation. In either case, a stable ROK-US alliance is the cornerstone for Korea's national strategy. Korea and the United States agreed to pursue ‘21st century ROK-US strategic alliance’ at the summit meeting held at Camp David in April 2008. The vision of ROK-US strategic alliance comprises three pillars: First, a value-oriented alliance means that the ROK and the United States share fundamental values such as democracy, market economy, human rights, and so on, and both nations will cooperate to promote these values all over the world. Second, a trust-based alliance indicates that the ROK-U.S. alliance is more than a military alliance, expanding their horizon of cooperation into political, economic, social, and cultural areas, making it a very comprehensive one. Third, a peace-promoting alliance emphasizes teamwork to promote peace in regional and global human security issues—such as humanitarian relief in disasters, peace-keeping operations in conflict situations, and prevention of proliferation of WMD and terrorism. In order to pursue such a strategic alliance, many tasks are required in military area. First, both ROK and the United States must work out a cooperative guideline after the dissolution of the ROK-US Combined Forces Command with the scheduled transfer of wartime operational control in 2012. Second, both nations must also have a working guideline for the strategic flexibility of the US Forces in Korea. Third, regarding the burden sharing for the cost of USFK, Korea is recommended to consider raising its contribution up to 50 percent as Washington hopes. Fourth, Korea is recommended to proactively examine the possibility of joining the Proliferation Security Initiative and Missile Defense system. Fifth, ROK and the United States should begin to discuss the contingency plan in case of emergency situations in North Korea. Sixth, Korea is recommended to support stability operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, not just because the United States might request, but as a commitment to fulfill its duty as a responsible member of international community. Finally, in order to enhance peace-promoting activities and to implement the vision of ‘Global Korea’, Korea must increase its share of ODA significantly. In the incoming Obama adminstration, the vision of ROK-US strategic alliance will continue. In light of Democrat's tradition of emphasizing American values such as democracy and human rights, the inauguration of the Obama administration can be both opportunity and challenge. Depending upon how Seoul and Washington views each other, the Obama-Lee team can find a good chance to expand the common grounds that upkeep a truly value-based alliance partnership.