KAPAC ::: Korean American Public Affairs Communittee :::

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  kapac 2009-03-02 16:25:26 | READ : 3032

T  I  T  L  E   Alliance for Added Values

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Eliot Ilsuk Kim,  Chairman, Policy Committee of KAPAC

                 As the Obama Administration took an oath in the US, many in the US and in South Korea are await with keen interest the direction of the policies of the new US Government towards the Korean Peninsula and its ramifications on the relations between the US and Korea in the years to come. About a year earlier, the Lee Myung-Bak Administration was inaugurated in South Korea as the majority Korean voters had switched their votes in the 2007 presidential election to moderate, pragmatic opposition candidate Lee Myung-bak instead of a ruling candidate. Unlike his radical, outspoken predecessor Roh Moo-hyun, President Lee placed a higher priority on the alliance relationship with US and hence has been praised by many to restore a close relationship with the Bush Administration. We Korean Americans had to endure an uneasy period of witnessing ever deepening strain between the South Korean Government and the Bush Administration for the last several years. The views of the two leaders were miles apart with regard to the policies regarding the North Korean issues in particular. So the past one year has been a peaceful break away from the trials of the preceding years.

        Although we now may afford to be sanguine about the outcome of the new policies of the Obama Administration, we also need to be mindful of the potential stumbling blocks that could jeopardize a smooth path we are looking forward to take. These may include the North Korean nuclear programs and the trade issues. Although they certainly are tough issues to tackle, as long as the spirit of alliance kept intact and solid their resolution will somehow be materialized. What in fact warrants a more attention by the US and South Korea is the possibility that skepticism could arise as to the alliance during turbulent process of resolving these outstanding issues and the cohesion of the alliance is weakened as a result of that.

        Presumably such skepticism is more likely to arise on the part of the US than South Korea where the alliance had already gone through the tough tests. The majority of South Korean citizens now understand that the alliance with the US is the only viable option of assuring its security and the long term interests. They grew tired of the outburst of nationalism and anti-American sentiments that tormented the nascent Korean democracy for the past two decades. South Korea has been sharing the financial burden to upkeep the US forces stationed in the country and its level of support is the second only to Japan’s. It also concluded the Free Trade Agreement with the US. All of these testify to the support of the Korean people willing to render to their alliance with the US. Above all else, the victory of Lee Myung-bak in the 2007 Presidential election is the unmistakable reflection of the sweeping changes in the South Korean public opinions.

        In contrast to the positive developments in South Korea, the situation in the US is fluid rather than solid. Some has been arguing that the alliance is one sided as the US generally takes a heavier burden. Others may speculate that South Korea may not constitute a vital US national interest. So the US should not interfere with the internal problems between the two Koreas. Unless this line of talking is about the US-Korea relations in 1950s after the Korean War, it is a gross mischaracterization of the current state of the relations between the two allies. South Korea is no longer a struggling third world nation. It is the World’s eleventh largest economic power and its trade volume is in the similar order. It looks smaller only because it is neighbored by much bigger players. Not only that, the character of the US Forces in Korea also has been evolved significantly from its traditional role of deterring the North Korean threat to ones of ensuring the stability of Northeast Asia at large and underwriting the politico-diplomatic leadership of the US as the sole super power of the World if seen from a broader perspective. These are added values accrued to the US from its commitment to the ROK-US alliance. Likewise, South Korea also reaps added values in the form of upholding its newly acquired status as a trading and sea going power in addition to preserving the peace on the Korean Peninsula.

        Failing to grasp this reality, however, the North Koreans has been meddling about the ROK-US alliance and the stationing of US forces in South Korea; their thinking is obviously trapped in the ideological mould formed in the 1950s. That is why we cannot stop worrying about a possibility that the alliance run the risk of being hallowed out in the process of orchestrating a resolution, pseudo or even real ones, of the complicated issues like the North Korean nuclear programs. At this time of uncertain 21st Century, the challenges to fling upon the ROK-US alliance are presumably much bigger and complicated than the North Korean ones. Preserving their alliance solid and robust, the US and South Korea should seek the resolution of the problems posed by North Korea. The future of the alliance will be shaped in large measures by the outcomes of this venture. <end>