CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY (Grant Newsham) - South Korea: the ‘model ally?’
Originally posted by The Korea Signal
Undersecretary of War, Elbridge Colby called South Korea (Republic of Korea, ROK) a “model ally” while visiting Seoul a few months ago. A “model ally ?” Compared to what? South Korea is still a longtime partner and an ally bound by a mutual defense treaty signed in 1953. However, all relationships change over time, and the U.S.-ROK relationship isn’t what it once was. Most of America’s ‘model’ allies don’t have influential figures associated with the ruling party — in this case, the elder brother of Kim Min-Seok, until recently the prime minister and now in the running to head the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) — declared that Trump’s America is “the apex of Yankee imperialism.” It’s equally rare…Open