As Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House, Asian allies face a wave of uncertainty about his policies and potential impact on regional security.
For America’s friends in Asia, the uncertainty brought by the impending return of Donald Trump to the White House is coming at a bad time. China has been modernizing its military and nuclear arsenal while becoming increasingly aggressive in asserting territorial claims in the South China Sea and over Taiwan. North Korea has ramped up its belligerent rhetoric and calls to develop its illegal nuclear program.
Both countries have expanded their alignment with Russia as it wages war on Ukraine, linking Asia to the shattered peace in Europe. For decades, the US has backed the security of its allies in the region, which has more overseas active-duty American troops than anywhere else in the world. Tens of thousands of soldiers are stationed on sprawling bases in treaty allies South Korea and Japan, countries that, like the Philippines and Australia, the US is bound to aid if they come under attack. Those countries are now preparing for the return of an American leader who has railed against what he sees as free-riding US allies who don’t pay enough for defense, sidled up to autocrats, and called for an “America first” approach to global obligations. Many questions about Trump are on the minds of US-aligned leaders in Asia, observers across the region say. Will Trump ask for more defense spending than allies can afford? Could he take an extreme step to withdraw US forces if any such demands aren’t met? Will the businessman-turned-leader cut deals with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, North Korea’s Kim Jong Un or Russia’s Vladimir Putin that undermine the interests of US allies? Alternatively, could he perhaps strengthen US alliances and be a tougher opponent for America’s enemies? In the shadow of this uncertainty, leaders across the region have been scrambling to forge strong ties with the notoriously mercurial incoming US commander-in-chief, who’s known to link foreign policy to personal rappor
DONALD TRUMP CHINA NORTH KOREA US ALLIES ASIA
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