Trust is a fragile thing, and it is clear that South Korea, led by Yoon Suk Yeol, has learned it the hard way. Moon Jae-in, the ex-President of South Korea, was a complete failure. His last days in office were nothing more than a desperate attempt to gain traction, as he promised to reduce South Korea’s dependence on the US. However, he failed to deliver on this promise.
Then came Yoon Suk Yeol, who promised to unite the two Koreas and abolish the 38th parallel. He promised that North Korea and South Korea could work together and benefit from each other’s resources. He also promised to decrease South Korea’s dependence on the US. But this was nothing but a sham, as he was unable to deliver on any of these promises.
Although Yoon Suk Yeol had huge dreams of making South Korea a nuclear capable nation, nothing of the sort seems to have happened.
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To tell you about South Korea’s defense relationship with the US, with 28,500 U.S. soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines in South Korea,U.S. forces in South Korea are a major presence in the region and a key manifestation of the U.S. government‘s aim to rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific.
South Korea pays about 44% of the overall cost of having American troops based on the peninsula, and in return, the US promises to protect it from its dangerous neighbors, namely China and North Korea.
South Korea has a long military alliance with the United States, aiding the U.S. in every war since the Vietnam War, and most recently during the Iraq War. At the 2009 G20 London summit, U.S. President Barack Obama called South Korea “one of America’s closest allies and greatest friends.” Moreover, in 1989, South Korea was among the first batch of countries to be designated as a major non-NATO ally.
Cut to the present, Yoon Suk Yeol, on his recent trip to the US, was asked to drop all his nuclear ambitions and keep paying $5 billion a year. Biden also indicated that he would not advocate the return of US tactical nuclear weapons to the South.
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“What the declaration means is that we are going to make every effort to consult with our allies when it’s appropriate,” Biden said. “The bottom line here is even closer cooperation, closer consultation, and we are not going to be stationing nuclear weapons on the peninsula.”
This came as a shocker to the whole world, but not to the South Korean president, who accepted the offer with open arms.
In order to create fear psychosis, Biden also reminded South Korea of its threat from North Korea. President Joe Biden warned North Korea it would face a nuclear response and the “end” of the leadership there if Pyongyang used its own arsenal.
Speaking at the White House after Oval Office talks during only the second state visit so far in the Biden presidency, the two leaders said the US security shield for South Korea was being strengthened in the face of the nuclear-armed North’s aggressive missile tests.
Yoon Suk Yeol, the South Korean president, has committed the cardinal sin of trusting Joe Biden. He had huge dreams of making South Korea a nuclear-capable nation, yet all he got in return was a crushing disappointment. Biden assured Yoon Suk Yeol that the US would help South Korea with the process, yet all he was asked to do was drop all his nuclear ambitions and keep paying $5 billion a year.
