{"id":2200594,"date":"2023-03-31T19:48:47","date_gmt":"2023-03-31T10:48:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2200594"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:07:47","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:07:47","slug":"why-south-korea-is-paying-close-attention-to-the-indictment-of-donald-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/03\/why-south-korea-is-paying-close-attention-to-the-indictment-of-donald-trump\/","title":{"rendered":"Why South Korea is paying close attention to the indictment of Donald Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"
Donald Trump became the first former U.S. president to be indicted on criminal charges on Thursday, and experts say the unprecedented development could have implications as far-reaching as the Korean Peninsula.<\/span><\/p>\n Imprisoning former presidents is almost <\/span>standard<\/span><\/a> practice<\/span><\/a> in South Korea. But the U.S. is treading uncharted waters, said attorney and <\/span>Korea Pro<\/span><\/i> contributor Jumin Lee.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cTwo-hundred-and-fifty years, 46 presidents \u2014 none of them had criminal charges brought against them after they left office. Until today.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The New York court\u2019s decision to indict the former U.S. president could either boost or derail his efforts to return to office. And whether or not Trump returns to the White House in 2024 will have severe ramifications for South Korea.<\/span><\/p>\n Trump seemingly did all he could to weaken the U.S.-ROK alliance from 2017 to 2021, disparaging South Korea as a free-rider and imposing huge on-year costs to Seoul to keep U.S. troops in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n Many South Koreans were uncertain whether the U.S. would intervene in the event of a North Korean attack on the South or whether it would honor its nuclear umbrella commitments.<\/span><\/p>\n Joe Biden and his ROK counterpart Yoon Suk-yeol have worked hard to address these concerns and rebuild trust in the alliance. The Yoon administration\u2019s defense strategy against North Korean threats rests on <\/span>extended deterrence<\/span><\/a> and a strong alliance. Joint exercises are a key pillar of alliance readiness.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Further, South Korea <\/span>did not hesitate to sign on<\/span><\/a> to the U.S.-led <\/span>Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity<\/span><\/a> (IPEF) \u2014 the Biden administration\u2019s effort to regain U.S. footing in the regional economy after Trump torpedoed the multilateral <\/span>Trans-Pacific Partnership<\/span><\/a> deal.<\/span><\/p>\n Yoon\u2019s agreement to join IPEF was surprising as Seoul previously eschewed U.S.-led trade groups and networks.<\/span><\/p>\n However, if the Trump indictment rallies U.S. conservatives to vote Trump back into office, it could severely limit Washington\u2019s ability to convince Seoul and others in the region to sign on to U.S. leadership initiatives in East Asia.<\/span><\/p>\n While Trump was in office, he was openly critical of U.S. overseas defense spending, including in South Korea.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n