Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018. ix, 282 pp. (Tables, graph.) US$29.99, paper. ISBN 978-1-107-50713-5.
Considering the great importance of the Republic of Korea-United States alliance as a strategic mechanism providing security and peace to the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia, new additions to its study are most welcome. The Evolution of the South Korea-United States Alliance by Uk Heo and Terence Roehrig is a concise but impressively comprehensive work treating many aspects of the alliance. The authors state that while most of the previous literature on the alliance has focused on particular aspects of the ROK-US relationship, their study aims to be more comprehensive, covering its history, politics, security, perception, and specifically anti-American sentiment in South Korean society, economics, and the future of the alliance. They achieve their aims, and their contribution is both illuminating and insightful.
This book traces the development of the ROK-US alliance during the past six decades, from theoretical and factual perspectives. In particular, it examines how the alliance has changed, the factors behind these changes, and what direction it might take in the future. The first chapter, “Theory and the South Korea-United States Alliance,” presents theories on alliance, deterrence, and development power to help explain the complex evolution of the alliance. The next chapter, “Early Relations and Establishing the States Alliance,” mentions events in the ROK-US relationship leading to the formation of the alliance. The “Democratization and the Alliance” chapter examines the US role in the South Korean transition to democracy and how South Korea’s democratization impacted the alliance. The “Security Motivations for the Alliance” chapter analyzes the origins and evolution of the ROK and US threat matrix. The “Economic Growth and the KORUS Free Trade Agreement” chapter treats the growing economic dimension of ROK-US ties. The “Changing Military Dimensions of the Alliance” chapter discusses the changing military roles and structures within the alliance. The last chapter of the book, “Conclusion: The Joint Vision and the Future of the Alliance,” envisions the future of the alliance, states the challenges that the alliance is facing, and reviews the central arguments of the book.
This book explains how the ROK-US alliance has evolved. The alliance was formed primarily out of security concerns to protect South Korea from another North Korean invasion. The nature of the alliance was a patron-client relationship in which the United States made decisions and South Korea had to live with those decisions on the level of military support and the content and magnitude of economic assistance. In time, the alliance underwent profound changes. These were mainly triggered by South Korea’s rapid economic growth, political liberalization, increased self-defense capability, and the Korean people’s new assertiveness and national pride. With these significant changes, Seoul and Washington have sought to change the nature of the alliance to more of a partnership, and it has become more complex and multifaceted. It now goes well beyond the old parameters of the security of the Korean Peninsula, as South Korea and the United States cooperate on regional and global security issues.
A strength of this book is that it provides information on the alliance not found in other studies. It does, however, suffer from some insufficiencies in terms of academic stringency. First, despite footnotes, this book lacks a bibliography. That could assist other scholars in their research. Also, the authors emphasize that deterrence of a North Korean invasion was the primary reason for the alliance. In the opinion of this reviewer, they do not give sufficient stress to the second priority of the alliance: that of restraining South Korea from provoking a war with North Korea. Moreover, in describing the ROK-US relationship, the authors use the term sadaejuŭi (52) but do not distinguish sadaejuŭi from sadae and mistakenly use the former instead of the latter. Sadaejuŭi is interpreted as “flunkeyism” or “toadyism.” Sadae, a non-pejorative term, represents the conflation of a weaker power’s attitude of subservience that acknowledges the strength of a great power with the political realism that prudently recognizes the greater power. The authors also are mistaken when they state on page 52: “However, throughout the 1800s, the strength of the Chinese power declined precipitously and was matched by the rise of Japan and Russia …. . Caught in the crucible, King Kojong believed ties to the United States would protect Korea from the pending storm.” In the 1880s, King Kojong sought to attract US support and aid to counterbalance China, not Japan or Russia. In addition, the authors should have mentioned the issue of extending the ROK missile range. Many South Koreans have urged their country to restore its “missile sovereignty.” Finally, there are a few minor errors. For example, “the US occupation of South Korea continued until June 1949” (57) should be revised to “the US military presence in South Korea”; “[t]he Soviets withdrew from the North in October 1948” (58) to “in December 1948”; and “[o]n October 19, China sent its troops to assist North Korea and stop the US/UN advance” (129) to “[i]n mid-October,” as Chinese troops were already in North Korea before October 19. Also, “Roh Moo-hyun” (172) should be “Roh Tae-woo.”
Despite these shortcomings, this book is a useful contribution to the subject. By addressing many crucial issues of the ROK-US alliance aided by illustrative tables and figures, the book helps the reader understand the whole evolution of the alliance. Heo and Roehrig make important contributions to the literature on alliance theory by using the ROK-US alliance as a case study. Given its comprehensive treatment of the evolution of the alliance, this book is suited for an academic audience as well as a wider readership interested in ROK-US relations.
Jinwung Kim
Kyungpook National University, Daegu, South Korea