Skip to main content
  • Sections
  • Search

Center for Strategic & International Studies

User menu

  • Subscribe
  • Sign In

Topics

  • Climate Change
  • Cybersecurity and Technology
    • Cybersecurity
    • Data Governance
    • Intellectual Property
    • Intelligence, Surveillance, and Privacy
    • Military Technology
    • Space
    • Technology and Innovation
  • Defense and Security
    • Counterterrorism and Homeland Security
    • Defense Budget
    • Defense Industry, Acquisition, and Innovation
    • Defense Strategy and Capabilities
    • Geopolitics and International Security
    • Long-Term Futures
    • Missile Defense
    • Space
    • Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation
  • Economics
    • Asian Economics
    • Global Economic Governance
    • Trade and International Business
  • Energy and Sustainability
    • Energy, Climate Change, and Environmental Impacts
    • Energy and Geopolitics
    • Energy Innovation
    • Energy Markets, Trends, and Outlooks
  • Global Health
    • Family Planning, Maternal and Child Health, and Immunizations
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • Health and Security
    • Infectious Disease
  • Human Rights
    • Building Sustainable and Inclusive Democracy
    • Business and Human Rights
    • Responding to Egregious Human Rights Abuses
    • Civil Society
    • Transitional Justice
    • Human Security
  • International Development
    • Food and Agriculture
    • Governance and Rule of Law
    • Humanitarian Assistance
    • Human Mobility
    • Private Sector Development
    • U.S. Development Policy

Regions

  • Africa
    • North Africa
    • Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Americas
    • Caribbean
    • North America
    • South America
  • Arctic
  • Asia
    • Afghanistan
    • Australia, New Zealand & Pacific
    • China
    • India
    • Japan
    • Korea
    • Pakistan
    • Southeast Asia
  • Europe
    • European Union
    • NATO
    • Post-Soviet Europe
    • Turkey
  • Middle East
    • The Gulf
    • Egypt and the Levant
    • North Africa
  • Russia and Eurasia
    • The South Caucasus
    • Central Asia
    • Post-Soviet Europe
    • Russia

Sections menu

  • Programs
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Analysis
    • Blogs
    • Books
    • Commentary
    • Congressional Testimony
    • Critical Questions
    • Interactive Reports
    • Journals
    • Newsletter
    • Reports
    • Transcript
  • Podcasts
  • iDeas Lab
  • Transcripts
  • Web Projects

Main menu

  • About Us
  • Support CSIS
    • Securing Our Future
Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Newsletter
Share
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Printfriendly.com

Trump and the U.S.-ROK Alliance

Korea Chair Snapshot

November 9, 2016

There have been efforts to offer comforting words about the continuity of cooperation in the U.S.-ROK alliance with the election of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States.  The South Korean foreign minister said as much to reporters yesterday.
 
Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that we have no idea what the impact will be on the alliance. The president-elect’s guiding principle has been to treat allies fairly but not allow them to unfairly take advantage of the United States.  Based on these and other soundbites we have heard during the campaign, we can hazard some guesses. 
 
  • Special Measures Agreement (SMA) - This is the first substantive alliance issue that is likely to come up in the Trump presidency.  The cost-sharing agreement will require renegotiation in 2017. Trump has said clearly during the campaign that allies need to pay their share.  Expect the United States to drive a hard bargain on renegotiation.

  • Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS) - South Korea’s desire to join TPP is now a moot issue.  Trump has stated clearly his opposition to the 12-nation agreement; moreover, there is a chance that his administration could re-evaluate KORUS, given the prevailing view during the campaign that these trade deals have hurt the American worker.

  • Operational Control Transfer (OPCON) -Trump’s guiding principle has been to put American interests first.  In this regard, it is entirely plausible that a Trump presidency may seek to complete OPCON transfer and put these responsibilities in the hands of Koreans.

  • General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) - Given Trump’s desires to see allies carry a larger burden, it is possible that his administration would support a general intelligence-sharing agreement between its allies, Japan and Korea.

  • North Korea - This is perhaps the biggest question mark.  During the campaign, the president-elect has offered everything from a willingness to sit down with Kim Jong-un to putting the problem entirely in China’s hands. It is plausible that he could try to cut a grand bargain.
This is all guesswork at the moment, but until we hear more from the president-elect, we should be under no assumption that continuity will prevail.

Korea Chair Snapshot is a product by the CSIS Korea Chair providing key takeaways from breaking events of the day and is published by the Office of the Korea Chair (http://www.csis.org/ program/korea-chair) at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a private, tax-exempt institution focusing on international public policy issues.
Photo Credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Written By
  • Twitter
Victor Cha
Senior Vice President for Asia and Korea Chair
Media Queries
Contact H. Andrew Schwartz
Chief Communications Officer
Tel: 202.775.3242

Contact Paige Montfort
Media Relations Coordinator, External Relations
Tel: 202.775.3173
Related
Asia, Asian Economics, Defense and Security, Geopolitics and International Security, Korea, Korea Chair, Korea Chair Snapshot

Most Recent From Victor Cha

On Demand Event
The Capital Cable #51: 2022 NATO Summit
June 30, 2022
Interactive
Punggye-ri Update: Status Quo
June 29, 2022 | Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha, Jennifer Jun
In Beyond Parallel
Interactive
Sinpo South Shipyard Update: Routine Activity
June 28, 2022 | Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha, Jennifer Jun
In Beyond Parallel
In the News
What a Concert by K-Pop Legend Rain in South Korea’s Former Presidential Compound Says About the Country’s Politics
TIME Magazine | Chad De Guzman
June 17, 2022
On Demand Event
The Capital Cable #50: Korea-Japan Relations and Trilateral Cooperation
June 16, 2022
Interactive
New Activity at Punggye-ri Tunnel No. 4
June 15, 2022 | Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha, Jennifer Jun
In Beyond Parallel
Interactive
Nampo Missile Test Stand Barge Update: Continued Intermittent Activity
June 9, 2022 | Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha, Jennifer Jun
In Beyond Parallel
On Demand Event
ROK-U.S. Strategic Forum 2022
June 6, 2022
View all content by this expert
Footer menu
  • Topics
  • Regions
  • Programs
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Analysis
  • Web Projects
  • Podcasts
  • iDeas Lab
  • Transcripts
  • About Us
  • Support Us
Contact CSIS
Email CSIS
Tel: 202.887.0200
Fax: 202.775.3199
Visit CSIS Headquarters
1616 Rhode Island Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Media Queries
Contact H. Andrew Schwartz
Chief Communications Officer
Tel: 202.775.3242

Contact Paige Montfort
Media Relations Coordinator, External Relations
Tel: 202.775.3173

Daily Updates

Sign up to receive The Evening, a daily brief on the news, events, and people shaping the world of international affairs.

Subscribe to CSIS Newsletters

Follow CSIS
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

All content © 2022. All rights reserved.

Legal menu
  • Credits
  • Privacy Policy
  • Reprint Permissions