US-Korean Relations: The Evolving Missile Context

Abstract

U.S.-Korean relations have been influenced by diverse factors over the years. Political, economic, and strategic parameters have shaped and reshaped U.S. relations with both South and North Korea, and strongly influenced the circumstances of inter-Korean relations. Two characteristics have dominated these factors. First, there is a prevailing tendency to focus on momentous events such as the impact of the Korean War, the Cold War, political successions, and periodic crises of one sort or another. As corollaries of these major events, an array of precipitating factors have played a causal role in U.S.-Korean relations. A second characteristic is the endemic interplay between the policies of both the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) vis-a-vis U.S. policy toward either Korea and vis-a-vis each other. In short, the evolution of U.S.-Korean relations has been subject to many nuances.