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International relations
International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such a ...
between
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
commenced in 1950, when the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
helped establish the modern state of
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
, also known as the Republic of Korea, and fought on its
UN-sponsored side in the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
(1950–1953). During the subsequent four decades, South Korea experienced tremendous
economic
An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...
,
political
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...
and
military
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
growth.
South Korea has a long military alliance with the United States, aiding the U.S. in every war since the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
, and most recently during the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror
, image ...
.
At the
2009 G20 London summit
The 2009 G20 London Summit was the second meeting of the G20 heads of government/heads of state, which was held in London on 2 April 2009 at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre to discuss financial markets and the world economy. It followed the first ...
, U.S. President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...
called South Korea "one of America's closest allies and greatest friends." In 1989, South Korea was among the first batch of countries to be designated as a
major non-NATO ally
Major non-NATO ally (MNNA) is a designation given by the United States government to close allies that have strategic working relationships with the US Armed Forces but are not members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). While the ...
.
According to academics David Shambaugh and Michael Yahuda, there are currently several security factors shaping the alliance:
# The challenges posed by North Korea's nuclear and missile program and the potential of weapons proliferation to other states,
# The impact of peace and reunification developments on the Korean peninsula on the strategic relationship between the United States and China
# The potential impact of events on the Korean peninsula on Japan and Sino-Japanese rivalry.
South Korea is currently one of the most pro-American countries in the world. According to a 2018 Pew survey, 77% of South Koreans had a favorable view of the United States, while 21% had a negative view. According to a 2018 Gallup poll, 77% of Americans had a favorable view of South Koreans, while 22% had a negative view.
However, signs indicate S.K.-U.S. relations may be simultaneously strengthening, as cultural exchange (see also TALK program), developments in media partnership (See Parasite Oscar win), and a strong trade in goods and services continues. South Korea is also a top destination of U.S. military hardware, with a recent deal in August 2019 for Seahawk helicopters topping 800 million dollars.
The former US Ambassador to South Korea, Harry Harris, arrived in Seoul on July 7, 2018. The post had been vacant since President Donald Trump took office in January 2017. Harris, a former head of the US military's Pacific Command, has expressed his resolve to work as an ambassador to strengthen the alliance between the United States and South Korea.
Country comparison
Leaders of South Korea and the United States from 1950
ImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:70
PlotArea = left:80 right:15 bottom:80 top:5
DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy
Define $start = 01/01/1950
Define $end = 31/12/2022
Period = from:$start till:$end
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal
ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:5 start:01/01/1955
ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:01/01/1950
Legend = orientation:horizontal position:bottom
Colors =
id:lib value:blue legend:Liberals_(S._Korea)
id:con value:coral legend:Conservatives_(S._Korea)
id:dem value:skyblue legend:Democratic_Party_(U.S.)
id:gop value:pink legend:Republican_Party_(U.S.)
BarData =
bar:kr text:South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
bar:us text:United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
PlotData=
align:center mark:(line,black)
bar:kr
from: 10/05/2022 till: $end color:con text:" Yoon"
from: 10/05/2017 till: 10/05/2022 color:lib text:"Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
"
from: 25/02/2013 till: 10/03/2017 color:con text:" Park G."
from: 25/02/2008 till: 25/02/2013 color:con text:" Lee M.B."
from: 25/02/2003 till: 25/02/2008 color:lib text:" Roh M.H."
from: 25/02/1998 till: 25/02/2003 color:lib text:" Kim D.J."
from: 25/02/1993 till: 25/02/1998 color:con text:" Kim Y.S."
from: 25/02/1988 till: 25/02/1993 color:con text:" Roh T.W."
from: 01/09/1980 till: 25/02/1988 color:con text:" Chun D.H."
from: 26/10/1979 till: 16/08/1980 color:con text:" Choi"
from: 24/03/1962 till: 26/10/1979 color:con text:" Park C.H."
from: 13/08/1960 till: 24/03/1962 color:lib text:" Yun"
from: $Start till: 26/04/1960 color:con text:" Rhee"
bar:us
from: 20/01/2021 till: $end color:dem text:" Biden"
from: 20/01/2017 till: 20/01/2021 color:gop text:"Trump
Trump most commonly refers to:
* Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021)
* Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank
Trump may also refer to:
Businesses and organizations
* Donald J. T ...
"
from: 20/01/2009 till: 20/01/2017 color:dem text:"Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
"
from: 20/01/2001 till: 20/01/2009 color:gop text:" G.W.Bush"
from: 20/01/1993 till: 20/01/2001 color:dem text:" Clinton"
from: 20/01/1989 till: 20/01/1993 color:gop text:" G.H.W.Bush"
from: 20/01/1981 till: 20/01/1989 color:gop text:"Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
"
from: 20/01/1977 till: 20/01/1981 color:dem text:"Carter
Carter(s), or Carter's, Tha Carter, or The Carter(s), may refer to:
Geography United States
* Carter, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Carter, Mississippi, an unincorporated community
* Carter, Montana, a census-designated place
* Carter ...
"
from: 09/08/1974 till: 20/01/1977 color:gop text:"Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
"
from: 20/01/1969 till: 09/08/1974 color:gop text:"Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
"
from: 22/11/1963 till: 20/01/1969 color:dem text:"Johnson
Johnson is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin meaning "Son of John". It is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a common family name in Scotland, Johnson is occasionally a variation of ''Johnston'', a ...
"
from: 20/01/1961 till: 22/11/1963 color:dem text:" Kennedy"
from: 20/01/1953 till: 20/01/1961 color:gop text:"Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
"
from: $Start till: 20/01/1953 color:dem text:" Truman"
Historical background
![15 Logan Circle](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c7/15_Logan_Circle.jpg)
Following the
United States expedition to Korea
The United States expedition to Korea, known in Korea as the ''Shinmiyangyo'' () or simply the Korean Expedition, was the first American military action in Korea and took place predominantly on and around Ganghwa Island in 1871.
The reason fo ...
in 1871, the United States and Korea's
Joseon Dynasty
Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and r ...
established diplomatic relations under the 1882
Treaty of Peace, Amity, Commerce, and Navigation, a 1905, when Japan assumed direction over Korean foreign affairs. In 1910, Japan began a 35-year period of
colonial rule over Korea.
Following Japan's surrender to the
Allies in 1945, at the end of World War II, the
Korean Peninsula was divided at the 38th parallel into two occupation zones, with the United States in the South and the Soviet Union in the North. Initial talks in 1945–6 to achieve a unified, independent Korea were not successful, and in 1948 two separate nations were established – the Republic of Korea (ROK) in the South, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the North. On January 1, 1949, the United States officially recognized the Republic of Korea as the sole legitimate government of Korea and established diplomatic relations on March 25 of that year.
Korean War (6.25 War)
Cross-border skirmishes and raids at the 38th Parallel escalated into open warfare when the North Korean forces invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950.
In response, 16 member countries of the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
, including the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, came to the defense of
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
. It was the first significant armed conflict of the
Cold War with extensive deployment of U.S. and other troops.
Origins of the South Korea–United States alliance
![Syngman Rhee 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Syngman_Rhee_2.jpg)
Following the end of World War II, the United States established a
bilateral alliance with South Korea instead of establishing a
multilateral alliance with South Korea and other East Asian countries.
Moreover, the "U.S. alliance with South Korea would consequently have three functions. First, it would serve as part of a network of alliances and military installations designed to ring the
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
threat in the Pacific. Second, it would deter a second North Korean attack, with U.S. ground troops serving as the "tripwire" guaranteeing U.S. involvement. Third, it would restrain the South from engaging in adventurism."
The United States and South Korea are allies under the
1953 Mutual Defense Treaty. Under the agreement, U.S. military personnel have maintained a continuous presence on the Korean peninsula.
US military in Korea
![JFKWHP-KN-C19433](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/JFKWHP-KN-C19433.jpg)
South Korea and the United States agreed to a military alliance in 1953. They called it "the relationship forged in blood". In addition, roughly 29,000
United States Forces Korea
United States Forces Korea (USFK) is a sub-unified command of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). USFK is the joint headquarters for U.S. combat-ready fighting forces and components under the ROK/US Combined Forces Command (CFC) – a ...
troops are stationed in South Korea. In 2009, South Korea and the United States pledged to develop the alliance's vision for future defense cooperation. Currently, South Korean forces would fall under United States control should the war resume. This war time control is planned to revert to South Korea in 2022.
At the request of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, President
Park Chung-hee sent troops to Vietnam to assist American troops during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
, maintaining the second largest contingent of foreign troops after the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. In exchange, the United States increased military and economic assistance to South Korea. In 2004, President
Roh Moo-hyun
Roh Moo-hyun (; ; 1 September 1946 – 23 May 2009) was a South Korean politician and lawyer who served as the ninth president of South Korea between 2003 and 2008.
Roh's pre-presidential political career was focused on human rights advocacy for ...
authorized dispatching a
small contingent of troops to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
at the request of U.S. President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
.
Since 2009, air forces of South Korea and the U.S.A. have conducted annual joint exercises under the name "Max Thunder". In 2018 the drills began on May 11 and continued until May 17.
At a Cabinet meeting in Seoul on 10 July 2018 the government decided not to hold that year's Ulchi drill, scheduled for June 2018. The Government said the decision was made in line with recent political and security improvements on the peninsula and the suspension of South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises.
Former South Korean President
Moon Jae-in
Moon Jae-in (; ; born 24 January 1953) is a South Korean former politician, civil servant and lawyer who served as the 12th president of South Korea between 2017 and 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs an ...
, elected in May 2017, has said he supports the continuation of sanctions against North Korea if it is aimed at bringing North Korea out of its state of isolation and to the negotiating table. He also argued, at the same time, that he was against a "sanctions-only" approach toward North Korea. His approach to North Korea is similar to Kim Dae-jung's
Sunshine Policy
The Sunshine Policy () is the theoretical basis for South Korea's foreign policy towards North Korea. Its official title is The Reconciliation and Cooperation Policy Towards the North (), and it is also known as The Operational Policy Towards the ...
, which only continued up to the Roh Mu-hyun's administration.
In 2018 there were several rounds of talks regarding sharing the cost of U.S forces in South Korea. These reflect Washington's desire for South Korea to share a "greater burden" of the costs of the military deployment. On February 10, 2019, South Korea and the United States confirmed that a year long deal for keeping American troops, numbering 28,500, in South Korea had been made. This was in exchange for South Korea paying 925 million dollars to the United States.
In terms of American leadership, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush both emphasized the Middle East over North Korea. Clinton had deep emotional ties with Israel but neglected North Korea issues and never built strong personal relations with South Korean leaders. Bush, whose religious fundamentalism led him to divide the world into good and evil, had a personalized hatred for North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, but he also had frosty relations with South Korean leaders.
In his 2021 New Year’s press conference on January 18, President Moon Jae-in stated that the two Koreas might be able to discuss the U.S.-South Korea military drills through a joint inter-Korean military committee. However, U.S. officials expressed that it is not a topic to be decided by Pyongyang, and that scaling down the exercises was not desirable.
In May 2022, President Joe Biden and President Yoon Suk Yeol agreed in talks to begin discussions on restarting and potentially expanding joint military training on and around the Korean Peninsula. The move was a signal that
Biden was changing course from former President Donald Trump's positions in Asia.
Nuclear and missile diplomacy
![President Ronald Reagan toasts with President Chun Doo Hwan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/President_Ronald_Reagan_toasts_with_President_Chun_Doo_Hwan.jpg)
Between 1958 and 1991, the United States based a variety of nuclear weapons in South Korea. The number reached a peak of 950 warheads in 1967. Since 1991, when
President George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; p ...
announced the withdrawal of all tactical nuclear weapons based abroad, the Korean peninsula has seen ongoing efforts by the U.S. to negotiate an end to North Korea's own nuclear and missile development. These efforts have been characterized by "stalemates, crises and tentative progress." Despite the ongoing tensions, the U.S. has not redeployed nuclear weapons, although one recent press report suggests a majority of South Koreans are in favor of developing their own nuclear weapons. South Korea announced the deployment of the
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), formerly Theater High Altitude Area Defense, is an American anti-ballistic missile defense system designed to shoot down short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles in their termina ...
anti-ballistic missile defense system at the end of 2017.
Opinion polls
According to
Pew Research Center, 84% of South Koreans have a favorable view towards the United States and Americans (ranked within top 4 among the countries in the world). Also, according to a
Gallup Korea
Gallup Korea () or Gallup Korea Research Institute () is a South Korean research company. Founded by Park Moo-ik in 1974, the company became a member of Gallup International Association in 1997. It is best known for conducting public surveys o ...
poll, South Korea views the U.S. as the most favorable country in the world. On the political side, the United States supported South Korea after 1945 as a "staunch bastion against communism", even when the ROK itself was ruled by a US-backed dictatorship. In a March 2011 Gallup Poll, 74% of South Koreans said that they believe that the U.S. influence in the world is favorable,
and in a November 2011 Gallup Poll, 57% of South Koreans approved of U.S. leadership, with 22% disapproving. In a 2011 Gallup poll, a 65% favorability rating, the highest rating to date.
According to a 2014
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
World Service Poll, 58% of South Koreans view U.S. influence positively, the highest rating for any surveyed
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
n country.
As relations with Korea waxed hot and cold under President Donald Trump, American public opinion regarding North Korea likewise fluctuated sharply, and no clear picture emerges.
Anti-American sentiment in South Korea
US military and the sex trade
In 1953, at the end of the Korean War, the number of prostitutes in South Korea was estimated as about 350,000, with about 60 percent working near U.S. military camps.
In the post-Korean War period, the U.S military continued to contribute significantly to the South Korean economy, providing an estimated 1 percent of the South Korean GNP in 1991, including the sex industry.
[ Quoting the newsletter of My Sister's Place, July 1991, p. 8.] Despite the world-wide growth of women's human rights advocacy since the 1990s, and the shift towards foreign workers providing sex services for U.S troops, (particularly women trafficked from the Philippines and the former Soviet Union), prostitution via "juicy bars" remains an issue near U.S. bases in South Korea.
1992 Yun Geum-i murder
In 1992,
Yun Geum-i, a 26-year-old woman, was brutally killed by a U.S. serviceman, Private Kenneth L. Markle, in
Dongducheon.
In August 1993, the U.S. government compensated the victim's family with a payment of about US$72,000.
Markle was sentenced by a South Korean court to life imprisonment, later reduced to 15 years. Professor Katharine Moon notes that the murder was not unique, and did not spark a national debate about the presence of U.S. forces. However, it did become a "call to action" for some Koreans, and led to the establishment of the "National Campaign for the Eradication of Crimes by U.S. troops."
Environmental degradation
In July 2000, the
Eighth U.S. Army
The Eighth Army is a U.S. field army which is the commanding formation of all United States Army forces in South Korea. It commands U.S. and South Korean units and is headquartered at the Camp Humphreys,[formaldehyde
Formaldehyde ( , ) (systematic name methanal) is a naturally occurring organic compound with the formula and structure . The pure compound is a pungent, colourless gas that polymerises spontaneously into paraformaldehyde (refer to section ...]
, a toxic fluid, was released into the
Han River in February of that year. In a report released in 2017 detailing spill incidents from 1995 to 2015 at the
US garrison in Yongsan, South Korean environmentalist groups expressed concern about the lack of transparency and the possibility of continued water contamination, as well as who would take responsibility for cleanup of the site.
Yangju highway incident
On 13 June 2002, two 14-year-old South Korean schoolgirls were crushed to death by a 50-ton
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
vehicle in
Yangju
Yangju () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Yangju is located south of Dongducheon and north of Uijeongbu, not far from Seoul.
History
* 1395 - Renamed to Yangju.
* January 1, 1963 - Uijeongbu is separated and becomes a city.
* Apri ...
.
Anti-Americanism
Anti-Americanism (also called anti-American sentiment) is prejudice, fear, or hatred of the United States, its government, its foreign policy, or Americans in general.
Political scientist Brendon O'Connor at the United States Studies Centr ...
was pervasive after the driver and the navigator of the vehicle were both acquitted in U.S.
courts-martial
A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
on charges of
negligent homicide
Negligent homicide is a criminal charge brought against a person who, through criminal negligence, allows another person to die.
Examples include the crash of Aeroperu Flight 603 near Lima, Peru. The accident was caused by a piece of duct tape ...
. There was resentment from protesters towards the
U.S.–South Korea Status of Forces Agreement, which restricted South Korea from having jurisdiction over alleged crimes that occurred when American soldiers were on official duty. South Korean presidential candidate
Lee Hoi-chang
Lee Hoi-chang (; born June 2, 1935) is a South Korean politician and lawyer who served as the 26th Prime Minister of South Korea from 1993 to 1994. He was a presidential candidate in the 15th, 16th and 17th presidential elections of South K ...
called on United States President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
to "apologize to soothe the pain of the Korean people and to prevent any escalation in anti-American sentiment". American
ambassador to South Korea Thomas C. Hubbard apologized on behalf of Bush.
2008 beef protests in South Korea
The Government of South Korea banned imports of U.S. beef in 2003 in response to a case of
mad cow disease
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is an incurable and invariably fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle. Symptoms include abnormal behavior, trouble walking, and weight loss. Later in the course of t ...
in
Washington state
Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...
. In 2008, the protests against U.S. beef recalled the student "pro-democracy" movements of the 1980s. Nevertheless, by 2010 South Korea had become the world's third largest U.S. beef importer. With its strong import growth, South Korea surpassed
Japan for the first time to become the largest market for U.S. beef in
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
and in 2016 US beef imports in Korea reached a value of $1 billion.
2015 attack on the United States Ambassador
At about 7:40 a.m. on March 5, 2015,
Mark Lippert
Mark William Lippert (born February 28, 1973) is an American diplomat who has worked as the vice president for international affairs at Boeing since 2017. He previously served as the United States Ambassador to South Korea from 2014 to 2017. Prio ...
,
United States Ambassador to South Korea
The United States Ambassador to South Korea () is the chief diplomatic representative of the United States accredited to the Republic of Korea. The ambassador's official title is "Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States ...
was attacked by a knife-wielding man at a restaurant attached to
Sejong Center
Sejong Center for the Performing Arts is the largest arts and cultural complex in Seoul, South Korea. It has an interior area of 53,202m². It is situated in the center of the capital, on Sejongno, a main road that cuts through the capital city o ...
in downtown Seoul, where he was scheduled to give a speech at a meeting of the Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation.
[Choe Sang-hun & Michael D. Shear]
U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Is Hospitalized After Knife Attack
''New York Times'', March 4, 2015. The assailant, Kim Ki-jong, is a member of Uri Madang, a
progressive cultural organization opposed to the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
. He inflicted wounds on Lippert's left arm as well as a four-inch cut on the right side of the ambassador's face, requiring 80 stitches.
Lippert underwent surgery at
Yonsei University
Yonsei University (; ) is a private research university in Seoul, South Korea. As a member of the " SKY" universities, Yonsei University is deemed one of the three most prestigious institutions in the country. It is particularly respected in th ...
's
Severance Hospital
Severance Hospital is a teaching hospital located in Sinchon-dong, Seodaemun District, South Korea. It is one of the oldest and biggest university hospitals in South Korea. It has 2,437 beds and treats approximately 2,500,000 outpatients and 8 ...
in Seoul. While his injuries were not life-threatening, doctors stated that it would take several months for Lippert to regain use of his fingers.
A police official said that the knife used in the attack was long
and Lippert later reported that the blade penetrated to within 2 cm of his carotid artery. ABC News summarized the immediate aftermath of the attack as follows: "Ambassador Lippert, an Iraq war veteran, defended himself from the attack. Lippert was rushed to a hospital where he was treated for deep cuts to his face, his arm, and his hand. ...
ekept his cool throughout the incident."
During the attack and while being subdued by security, Kim screamed that the rival Koreas should be unified and told reporters that he had attacked Lippert to protest the
annual United States–South Korean joint military exercises.
Kim has a record of militant
Korean nationalist activism; he attacked the Japanese ambassador to South Korea in 2010 and was sentenced to a three-year suspended prison term. On September 11, 2015, Kim was sentenced to twelve years in prison for the attack.
Opposition to THAAD
The rollout of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) has been met with domestic opposition in South Korea. The opposition has been on the grounds that the North Korean threat has gone, and on environmental grounds.
THAAD was deployed under the administration of ROK President
Park Geun-hye
Park Geun-hye (; ; often in English ; born 2 February 1952) is a South Korean politician who served as the 11th president of South Korea from 2013 to 2017, until she was impeached and convicted on related corruption charges.
Park was the fi ...
. Her opponents accused her of "bow
ngtoo readily to America's requests."
According to
South China Morning Post, when Prime Minister
Hwang Kyo-ahn
Hwang Kyo-ahn (; born 15 April 1957) is a South Korean politician and prosecutor who served as acting president of South Korea from 9 December 2016 to 10 May 2017 and the 40th prime minister of South Korea from 18 June 2015 to 11 May 2017.
Hwa ...
visited Seongju to appease the local backlash against THAAD, demonstrators blocked Hwang's buses and pelted him with eggs and water bottles. The progressive People's Party also opposes the deployment.
The decision to deploy THAAD in South Korea has been opposed and criticized by China and Russia who have accused the US of "destabilizing
heregion."
On 30 October 2017, South Korea and China agreed to normalize relations, which had rifted due to THAAD deployment.
South Korea's economic dependence on China has been a source of friction for the Korea-US alliance. In April 2020, the National Assembly speaker
Moon Hee‐sang declared that asking the ROK to choose between China and America was like “asking a child whether you like your dad or your mom.” He said that South Korea cannot leave aside his economic interests for the sake of security, and vice versa.
Economic relations
South Korea has experienced significant economic growth in the years since the Korean War, sometimes referred to as the
Miracle on the Han River
The Miracle on the Han River refers to the period of rapid economic growth in South Korea, following the Korean War (1950–1953), during which South Korea transformed from a least developed country to a developed country. The rapid reconstru ...
.
As of 2019, China is the ROK's largest trading partner, leading Japan (2nd) and the United States (3rd). Exports to the United States have fallen from 40 percent in the late 1980s to less than 20 percent in 2002.
Disputes
There remains some major trade disputes between the ROK and the US in the areas including
telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...
s,
automotive industry
The automotive industry comprises a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industries by revenue (from 16 % such ...
,
intellectual property rights
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...
issues,
pharmaceutical
A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field an ...
industry, and the
agricultural industry.
[Manyin, M. (2004). South Korea-U.S. Economic Relations: Cooperation, Friction, and Future Prospects. CRS Report for Congress. Retrieved from https://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/34347.pdf ]
South Korea's export-driven economy and competition with domestic U.S. producers in certain fields of products have led to some trade friction with the United States. For example, imports of certain steel and non-steel products have been subject to U.S. anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations. A total of 29 U.S. imports from South Korea have been assessed.
Cultural exchange
The South Korean government maintains Korean cultural education centers in:
Wheeling, Illinois
Wheeling is a village in Cook and Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it is primarily in Cook County, approximately northwest of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 39,137. Wheeling is named f ...
(near
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
),
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
,
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
,
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
,
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
, and
Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
.
See also
*
United States–Korea Free Trade Agreement
The United States–Korea Free Trade Agreement (officially: Free Trade Agreement Between the United States of America and the Republic of Korea), also known as KORUS FTA, is a trade agreement between the United States and South Korea. Negotiatio ...
*
United States Army Military Government in Korea
The United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK) was the official ruling body of the Southern half of the Korean Peninsula from 8 September 1945 to 15 August 1948.
The country during this period was plagued with political and eco ...
(USAMGIK, 1945–1948)
*
Six-party talks
The six-party talks aimed to find a peaceful resolution to the security concerns as a result of the North Korean nuclear weapons program.
There was a series of meetings with six participating states in Beijing:
* China
* Japan
* North Korea ...
References
Further reading
* Baldwin, Frank, ed. ''Without Parallel: The American-Korean Relationship since 1945'' (1973).
* Berger, Carl. ''The Korean Knot: A Military-Political History'' (U of Pennsylvania Press, 1964).
* Chay, Jongsuk. ''Diplomacy of Asymmetry: Korea-American Relations to 1910'' (U of Hawaii Press, 1990).
* Chung, Jae Ho. ''Between Ally and Partner: Korea-China Relations and the United States'' (2008
excerpt and text search* Cumings, Bruce. ''The Origins of the Korean War: Liberation and the Emergence of Separate Regimes, 1945–1947'' (Princeton UP, 1981).
* Cumings, Bruce. ed. ''Child of Conflict: The Korean-American Relationship, 1943–1953'' (U of Washington Press, 1983).
* Dennett, Tyler. "Early American Policy in Korea, 1883-7." ''Political Science Quarterly'' 38.1 (1923): 82–103
in JSTOR* Denett, Tyler. ''Americans in East Asia: A Critical Study of the Policy of the United States with References to China, Japan, and Korea in the Nineteenth Century.'' (1922
online free
* Han, Jongwoo. '' The Metamorphosis of U.S.-Korea Relations: The Korean Question Revisited'' (2022
excerpt
* Harrington, Fred Harvey. ''God, Mammon, and the Japanese: Dr. Horace N. Allen and Korean- American Relations, 1884–1905.'' (U of Wisconsin Press, 1944).
* Heo, Uk and Terence Roehrig. 2018. ''The Evolution of the South Korea-United States Alliance''. Cambridge University Press.
*Hong, Hyun Woong. "American Foreign Policy Toward Korea, 1945–1950" (PhD dissertation, Oklahoma State University, 2007
online bibliography pp 256–72.
* Kim, Byung-Kook; Vogel, Ezra F. ''The Park Chung Hee Era: The Transformation of South Korea'' (Harvard UP, 2011).
* Kim, Claudia J. (2019) "
Military alliances as a stabilising force: U.S. relations with South Korea and Taiwan, 1950s–1960s." Journal of Strategic Studies
* Kim, Mikyoung. "Ethos and Contingencies: A Comparative Analysis of the Clinton and Bush Administrations' North Korea Policy." ''Korea and World affairs'' 31.2 (2007): 172–203.
* Kim, Seung-young, ed. ''American Diplomacy and Strategy toward Korea and Northeast Asia, 1882 – 1950 and After'' (2009
online* Lee, Yur-Bok and Wayne Patterson. ''One Hundred Years of Korean-American Relations, 1882–1982'' (1986)
* Matray, James I. ed. ''East Asia and the United States: An Encyclopedia of relations since 1784'' (2 vol. Greenwood, 2002)
excerpt v 2* Ryu, Dae Young. "An Odd Relationship: The State Department, Its Representatives, and American Protestant Missionaries in Korea, 1882—1905." ''Journal of American-East Asian Relations'' 6.4 (1997): 261–287.
* Yuh, Leighanne. "The Historiography of Korea in the United States". ''International Journal of Korean History'' (2010). 15#2: 127–144.
External links
Republic of Korea Embassy in Washington, D.C. U.S. Embassy in SeoulVideo on South Korea-US Relationsfrom th
Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:South Korea-United States relations
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
Bilateral relations of the United States
*South
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