South Korea-U.S. Alliance Seminar Explores Integration in AI and Security
Participants gathered in Seoul on Monday for a seminar focused on the South Korea-U.S. alliance, engaging in discussions surrounding artificial intelligence, regional security, and the prevailing strategic rivalry between the United States and China.
May 12 (Asia Today) — Experts in foreign policy and defense contended that South Korea must abandon its balancing act between the United States and China and instead pursue a deeper integration within the U.S.-led ecosystems of artificial intelligence and security.
This assertion emerged from a seminar organized by the Korea-U.S. Friendship Association, themed “Strategic Redesign of the South Korea-U.S. Alliance in the Era of U.S.-China Hegemonic Competition.”
Advocates posited that the alliance should transcend its traditional role as a bilateral military partnership, evolving into a broader institutional framework that encompasses regional security, economic coordination, and AI-centric technological cooperation.
Lee Keun, a professor at Seoul National University’s Graduate School of International Studies, highlighted South Korea’s essential role as a strategic partner for Washington, citing its advanced manufacturing sector, technological prowess, and military capabilities.
“South Korea is a partnership the United States requires, comparable to Israel’s significance in the Middle East,” Lee articulated. “With South Korea’s national power and global standing, expectations for greater contributions to international security will persist.”
Lee anticipated that the global landscape would increasingly be sculpted by the competition between the U.S. and China over artificial intelligence, characterizing the emerging milieu as a “soft Cold War.”
He contended that South Korea’s aspiration to rank among the world’s top three AI powerhouses renders a strategy of neutrality increasingly untenable.
“The technological and manufacturing synergy between South Korea and the U.S. AI ecosystem is profound,” he declared. “Ultimately, Korea is poised to integrate more fully into this ecosystem.”
He cautioned that concentrating solely on issues of strategic autonomy or fears of entrapment within the alliance overlooks the evolving dynamics of global power structures.
“As European influence wanes and Asia ascends, Korea and Japan must firmly position themselves as primary allies of the leading global powers,” he asserted.
The seminar also mulled over scenarios involving potential crises in Taiwan and the Korean Peninsula occurring concurrently.
Lee Joong-gu of the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses suggested that South Korea ought to be prepared to assist U.S. operations in non-combat capacities during a Taiwan contingency.
This could encompass logistical support for civilian transports, commercial aircraft, and non-combat naval vessels, alongside humanitarian aid operations.
“In a simultaneous crisis involving Taiwan and the Korean Peninsula, U.S. support for Korea might face partial constraints,” Lee warned.
“Korea’s proactive role during a Taiwan crisis could serve as leverage to guarantee future U.S. assistance during a crisis in Korea.”
Additionally, he emphasized the importance of ongoing efforts to transfer wartime operational control to South Korean forces while enhancing collaborative defense strategies for complex regional contingencies.
Source link: Upi.com.
