U.S.-ROK Alliance: Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of a Great Friendship

OPINION:

Anniversaries are an important time to reflect on good memories, achievements, sorrows, and hope for a better future. In 2023, the great ROK-U.S. Alliance celebrated 70 years together between the people of South Korea and the United States. A relationship sealed on the battlefields of the Korean War is now helping to build and shape a global partnership in all facets of our increasingly intertwined lives.

The Korea-US Alliance Foundation (KUSAF) and the Korea Defense Veterans Association (KDVA) are proud to support the millions of Koreans and 5.1 million American Veterans who have served together in Korea.  Their contributions and sacrifices have helped build this Alliance into one of the most important and most powerful alliances in the world. 

The Veterans’ example of selfless service has inspired tremendous achievements in 2023 with the great State Visit for ROK President Yoon, Suk Yeol, the historic U.S.-ROK-Japan Trilateral Leaders’ Summit at Camp David, the ROK-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting (SCM), and the first UN Command Member States Defense Ministerial Meeting in Seoul.  Each event was significant, but having all four in one year added even more meaning to the 70^th anniversary of the Alliance. 

KUSAF & KDVA are hopeful for the SCM’s “Defense Vision of the ROK-U.S. Alliance” which will serve as a “forward-looking posture” for bilateral defense cooperation, aimed at strengthening deterrence against the North Korea threat, modernizing Alliance capabilities, expanding into a science and technology security partnership, and strengthening solidarity with like-minded countries. Under this light, we believe that security cooperation among ROK-U.S.-Japan and UNC Member States will be strengthened.

The most famous expression that represents the U.S.-ROK Alliance is “We go together” (or in Korean, “Katchi Kapshida”). For the past 70 years, the U.S. and ROK walked the “same path” together by deterring North Korea’s nuclear threats and developing a solid and cooperative security and economic partnership. We hope the U.S. and ROK will keep walking together, and that Japan walks with us.