Democratic America in Northeast Asia: U.S. Strategy, Missile Defense and Implications for Allied Defense Relationships*

Abstract

This article examines the potential impacts of U.S. missile defense coupled with the updated national security strategy on allied defense relationships with Japan and South Korea. Facing predominantly asymmetric threats from the proliferation of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction from actors including rogue states such as North Korea, the U.S. has embarked on a long‐term plan for deploying missile defenses. However, in the near‐term, the technological feasibility may not correspond with the current official rhetoric concerning missile defenses. Failure to recognize potential sources of conflicts stemming from these issues within the alliances could fundamentally weaken both America's military strategy and the political foundations of the alliances.