ED US needs more mature approach to allies
U.S. President Donald Trump walks to board Air Force One, Thursday, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. AP-Yonhap
The high cost of losing ally's trust
The Pew Research Center poll released earlier this week has sent a warning signal to Washington: South Koreans’ trust in the United States under the Donald Trump administration is eroding.
Many Koreans feel that Trump has placed too much emphasis on U.S. interests, sometimes at the expense of South Korea’s security.
The Korean public was embarrassed by reports that Trump ordered the Pentagon to scale back the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise to create favorable conditions for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. In offering the proposal in a post on Truth Social, Trump did not mention the denuclearization of North Korea. Koreans are increasingly feeling uneasy about such rhetoric, wondering whether the U.S. remains a trusted ally.
Trust is essential, particularly among allies, to building a robust partnership. When allies become suspicious of one another and those suspicions are left unresolved, their partnership is ultimately doomed to fail.
The Pew Research poll found that 55 percent of South Koreans expressed an unfavorable view of the U.S., up from 39 percent last year. Meanwhile, 45 percent said they had a favorable view of the United States, a 16-percentage-point drop from last year. Despite the decline, that figure remains relatively strong compared with those recorded in many European countries.
The poll also showed that 85 percent of South Koreans disapproved of the way Trump is handling tariffs.
Pressuring allies to accept or make concessions on issues deemed beneficial to the U.S. is short-sighted. History shows that bilateral relations thrive when the countries involved pursue mutual gains rather than force one another to accept unilateral demands.
Mutual trust is a precondition for moving the Korea-U.S. alliance beyond a primarily military partnership. How the Korean public feels about the U.S. matters, especially as Seoul and Washington pursue measures to strengthen regional security.
Trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan is a good example. Washington has been keen to forge a stronger trilateral partnership to make the Indo-Pacific region safer in the face of growing threats from the three authoritarian powers — China, Russia and North Korea. In this sense, trilateral cooperation is a vital U.S. interest. When the Korean public regards the United States as a trusted ally, Washington will find it easier to rally support among Koreans for the initiative.
As in domestic politics, reputation matters in international relations. Being a trusted country is critical when the U.S. or any other nation seeks to advance its agenda. Mutual gains, rather than unilateralism, hold the key to improving the U.S. image around the world.