Trump presidency to create high anxiety among Asian allies

TOKYO/SEOUL — Republican Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election will deepen Asian allies’ anxiety about Washington’s commitment to post-war security arrangements in the face of a rising China and volatile North Korea, and could bolster calls from conservatives in Tokyo for a more robust defense policy. Trump’s “America First” rhetoric and calls for allies to pay more of the cost for US troops in the region or face their possible withdrawal have worried officials in some Asian capitals. So has his opposition to a 12-nation pan-Pacific trade pact that was a linchpin of Washington’s “pivot” to the region. “We should expect dramatic changes in the security environment,” said South Korea’s ruling Saenuri Party floor leader Chung Jin-suk in parliament on Wednesday. But he added: “In any case, there should not be any wavering in the Korea-US military alliance, which has been the foundation of prosperity of this country.” A Japanese government official, speaking before Trump clinched the election, urged the new president to send a reassuring message. “The new president-elect should as soon as possible issue a statement reassuring the rest of the world that the strong commitment of the United States to its allies ... remains strong and reliable,” said the official, who declined to be identified. “We are certainly concerned about the comments (Trump) has made to date about the alliance and the US role in the Pacific, particularly Japan,” the Japanese official said, although he added Trump’s policies might not match his rhetoric. Trump has made several comments that disturbed Washington’s Asian allies, from insisting they must foot more of the two-way defense bill to suggesting it might be alright for Tokyo and Seoul develop nuclear arms capability. In an article criticizing US President Barack Obama’s “pivot” to Asia as “talking loudly but carrying a small stick” two Trump advisers said he would beef up the US Navy while asserting it was “only fair” that Seoul and Tokyo pay more for defense. “There is no question of Trump’s commitment to America’s Asian alliances as bedrocks of stability in the region,” wrote University of California professor Peter Navarro and Alexander Gray, a former advisor to US politician Randy Forbes, in the article, which appeared in the Nov. 7 edition of Foreign Policy. — Reuters