North Korean belligerence in the form of nuclear and missile developments, a slowing Chinese economy and the successful vote to impeach President Park Geun-hye have compromised Seoul's ability to plan and implement social, political and security policy.
In this severe geopolitical, domestic and economic environment, the rhetoric of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, if turned into action, would exacerbate the negative trends on the peninsula with a foreign policy agenda that seems to deviate from the bipartisan approach Washington has had in the past, one characterized by stalwart support for South Korea.
To illustrate, during the election Trump casually mentioned that he was willing to talk to North Korean leader Kim Jung Un while at the same time suggesting that both South Korea and Japan should acquire nuclear weapons. This was proposed as a deterrent to North Korean nuclear brinksmanship and perceived Chinese assertiveness in the East China Sea, South China Sea and in South Korean territorial waters into which Chinese vessels have ventured as recently as Nov. 2. He has even suggested that South Korea should shoulder a larger burden of the costs associated with the U.S. military presence in the country.