Description
South Korea lies at the epicentre of geopolitical tensions in Northeast Asia. Faced with a heavily militarised North Korea to the north and rising power China to the west, South Korea has implemented a comprehensive defence strategy focused on deterrence, which includes the nuclear umbrella provided by its ally, the United States. However, since Pyongyang successfully developed an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which enables them to target American cities directly, there is increasing uncertainty in South Korea surrounding the US defence commitment to the region. Drawing on interviews with twenty South Korean policymakers, this paper argues that these developments have prompted a rethink of South Korea’s defence strategy. Although the South Korean government has consistently and confidently announced how rock-solid South Korea-the US relationship and US commitment to the Korean Peninsula are, behind the scenes, policymakers are increasingly focused on strengthening South Korea’s military capabilities and developing alternative deterrence strategies. This has included debating whether South Korea should develop its own nuclear weapons programme to deter North Korea. This research will contribute to deepening the understanding of the complex management of an asymmetric alliance while expanding the theoretical model of the alliance as a tool of management by Paul Schroeder.
