A South Korean Big Security Crisis Is Coming?: U.S. Foreign Policy towards Northeast Asia and U.S. Forces in Korea

The U.S. is alleged to be considering reducing the U.S. forces in Korea (USFK) to counter its foremost threat, China, and heighten its leverage over Seoul. Given a potential contingency in the Taiwan Strait and the U.S. strategy to raise Seoul’s contribution to defense costs and the South Korean defense budget, it may well plan to do so. However, this does not seem to be an effective approach, if the tide and current in the new Seoul government are carefully examined. The Lee Jae-myung government – which follows the progressive political line of the Democratic Party of Korea – was inaugurated right after the former pro-American government was impeached. President Lee and his close aides have argued for more balanced relations with the U.S. and are more assertive in their interactions. Moreover, the Lee government implements external and internal balancing strategies. It seeks to improve and expand its relations with Pyongyang and China. In addition, it strives to advance the defense industry. These strategies are conducive to increasing Seoul’s say vis-à-vis the U.S. For Washington, it is worth considering adopting liberal and constitutive in addition to realist approaches to address the U.S.-Korea alliance.