A View from Asia: The North Korean Missile Threat and Missile Defense in the Context of South Korea's Changing National Security Debate

Abstract

This article examines the current state of the national security debate in South Korea in the context of rapid democratization, a growing desire on the part of South Korea to pursue a more balanced and independent foreign policy posture even as it retains its core alliance with the United States, and the confluence of political and strategic forces that have combined to create unprecedented change in South Korea's security perceptions. While the missile defense issue continues to remain as a relatively minor facet of South Korea's overall national security debate, it illustrates the extent to which South Korean views have shifted since the end of the Cold War but particularly since the advent of the Kim Dae Jung government (1998–2003) and continuing well into the administration of Roh Moo Hyun. Specifically, the article traces the changing contours of South Korea's national security paradigm, Seoul's “New Thinking” on key foreign policy and national security issues, the missile threat and missile defense, and on-going efforts to modernize the U.S.-ROK alliance.