Seoul needs to cope with changing world order
A new U.S. national security strategy declared Monday by President Donald Trump is based on his "America first" mantra. It sent a clear and strong message to the world that the United State will stand up for itself to defend its national interests at all costs.
The so-called Trump doctrine could greatly change U.S. relations with the rest of the world if fully implemented. Its four key points are to protect the U.S., promote American prosperity, demonstrate peace through strength, and advance American influence in an ever-competitive world.
There is no doubt that Trump needs this new security formula to turn his "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan into practice. But his America-centric policy has become a cause for concern as it implied that the U.S. would run the risk of any confrontation with its rivals _ China and Russia _ to maintain its superpower status.
The doctrine appears to revive the specter of the Cold War. It holds that nation-states are in perpetual competition. It calls on the U.S. to fight on all fronts to protect and defend its sovereignty both from its friends and foes. This stance is a far cry from the strategy of his predecessor, Barack Obama, who stressed international partnerships and cooperation in tackling problems such as climate change.
Trump also emphasized the importance of U.S. economic security. He called for "firm action against unfair trade practices and intellectual property theft." This might bode ill for trade ties with its major business partners, including China. It is feared to trigger friction with South Korea, which is holding talks with the U.S. about the revision of a bilateral free trade agreement.
The Trump doctrine is drawing keen attention from South Koreans because of its position on the North Korean threat. It stated that the U.S. is ready to respond with "overwhelming force" to North Korean aggression. It added Washington will "improve options" to force Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons. It gave no details about the "options." But the U.S. may engage in military ones, especially after the North launched a new ICBM, the Hwasong-15, last month, which is believed to be capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.
The U.S. strategy may also have a unfavorable effect on President Moon Jae-in's efforts to resolve the North Korean issue peacefully. During his state visit to Beijing last week, he and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed on four principles including no war on the Korean Peninsula and the denuclearization of the peninsula.
Potential U.S. military options could not only detail these principles but also force Seoul to walk a tightrope between Washington and Beijing. That's why South Korea must leave no stone unturned in coping with the rapidly changing world order to avoid the worst-case scenario on the peninsula.
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