and South Korea held their largest ever joint military exercise in early 2016. The two nations

hold these drills annually to test their preparedness against an attack from North Korea. Besides

their shared disapproval for the North, South Korea and the US don’t seem to have much

in common. So we wanted to know, why do the US and South Korea love each other?

Well, South Korea and the US’s diplomatic relationship stems back to the aftermath of

World War Two. At the time, the Korean peninsula had recently split, and the UN refused to

recognize the North as a legitimate state. In response, North Korea invaded the newly

formed South, and the US came to South Korea’s defense. In 1954, following three years of

war, South Korea and the US created a “relationship forged in blood”, in which the two countries

agreed to defend each other in the event of an attack. Their alliance strengthened in

2008, when newly elected President Lee Myung-bak[Lee - MYUHNG BAHK] toughened South Korea’s stance

toward the North. Myung-bak also had a strong personal relationship with President Barack

Obama, who, in 2009 called South Korea “one of America’s closest allies and greatest

friends”.

Additionally, in 2007 the two countries agreed to a groundbreaking free trade agreement,

reducing taxes on exports and imports. Under this treaty, bilateral trade is expected to

be duty free within the next decade. Thus far it has increased their trade to over one

hundred billion dollars annually, with the US primarily exporting meat and South Korea

selling cars and machinery.Today, the US is South Korea’s second most important trading

partner, after China.

But North Korea’s volatility and potential danger is the glue that holds these two countries

together. North Korea’s relationship with South Korea has worsened considerably since

Myung-bak introduced his “Vision 3000” plan in 2007, which aimed to funnel money

into the North in exchange for their denuclearization. Pyongyang officials not only rejected this

proposal, they became even more aggressive by firing missiles off their west coast and

holding their second nuclear test. Tensions rose again in 2010, when North Korea allegedly

fired a torpedo at a South Korean warship, killing nearly 50 people on board. In response,

the US strengthened its economic sanctions on Pyongyang, and strengthened their military

partnership with South Korea. After another alleged nuclear test from the North in January

2016, the US sent four thousand troops to South Korea, reinforcing the nearly 30 thousand

already stationed there. Many of these troops are stationed at the Demilitarized Zone, or

DMZ, which separates North and South Korea. The US has attempted to create a peaceful

dialogue between North and South Korea not only because it honors their military alliance,

but because it addresses the threat of North Korea’s nuclear program.

Beyond trade and security, the US and South Korea share mutually positive social relations.

According to the Pew Research Center, 84 percent of South Koreans have a favorable view of

the US, a higher percentage than almost any other country. Roughly 65 percent of Americans

feel similarly for South Koreans. These recent large scale military exercises shows that

US and South Korea are as committed as ever to combatting North Korea’s turbulent behavior.

The no-mans land between North and South Korea is one of the most heavily militarized borders

in the world. Find out more about the DMZ by watching this video up top. You can also

get a closer look at just how powerful South Korea is by watching this video below. Thanks

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