Ex-U.S. officials assure Seoul Trump's criticism of response to Iran war ‘an afterthought’
Published: 08 Apr. 2026, 18:50
Updated: 08 Apr. 2026, 22:07
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- SEO JI-EUN
- [email protected]
![U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at the White House in Washington on April 6. [REUTERS/YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/08/04fdb66b-b35a-4259-a004-e74248d587df.jpg)
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at the White House in Washington on April 6. [REUTERS/YONHAP]
Two prominent former Donald Trump administration officials said Wednesday that South Korea should not be alarmed by the U.S. president's recent public criticism of Seoul, characterizing his remarks as a passing frustration driven largely by anger at Europe rather than a substantive change in alliance policy.
Their comments came as Trump has repeatedly targeted Seoul for what he described as a lack of support in policing the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran war.
"We have 45,000 soldiers in South Korea to protect them from [North Korean leader] Kim Jong-un, who I get along with very well [but] South Korea didn't help us," Trump said at a White House press conference on Monday, while citing a figure that significantly overstates the roughly 28,500 U.S. troops actually stationed on the peninsula.
Fred Fleitz, vice chair of the America First Policy Institute, and Randall Schriver, chair of board at the Institute for Indo-Pacific Security, argued that the South Korea-U.S. alliance remains on solid footing — even as Trump's transactional rhetoric has raised concern in Seoul, speaking on the sidelines of the Asan Plenum 2026 in Seoul.
Both security analysts welcomed Trump's announcement of a two-week ceasefire amid the Iran war Tuesday as a stabilizing development.
![Fred Fleitz, vice chair of the America First Policy Institute, speaks during a press conference during Asan Plenum, a forum hosted by the Asan Institute of Policy Studies, in Seoul on April 8. [ASAN INSTITUTE OF POLICY STUDIES]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/08/3412e94b-e679-4fba-9976-2937b92c0dd6.jpg)
Fred Fleitz, vice chair of the America First Policy Institute, speaks during a press conference during Asan Plenum, a forum hosted by the Asan Institute of Policy Studies, in Seoul on April 8. [ASAN INSTITUTE OF POLICY STUDIES]
"There's no question that President Trump was upset with the failure of NATO states to support the war effort [but] I believe Japan and South Korea are in a different category," Fleitz said during a press conference. "I do believe that South Korea is regarded by the president as a model ally and I don't believe that any concerns about this war are going to affect our relationship."
Trump’s criticism of South Korea, Fleitz added, was "in the heat of the current cycle" and not a reflection of a core policy shift.
“It almost was like an afterthought including these three states [Korea, Japan, Australia] when he’s really mad at [Europe],” Fleitz told the Korea JoongAng Daily. “He’s not mad at Japan or South Korea [...] if he was temporarily a little distressed, it’s going to pass.
"I think NATO has bigger problems because NATO denied bases that we really needed to conduct the operation," he added.
He also credited the diplomatic groundwork laid by Seoul's leadership as a key buffer against the president's occasional sharp words.
"The summit [with Lee] at the White House [in August 2025] was so successful, it really put government in a very good position to succeed with Trump," Fleitz said, adding that he remains "very committed to America's relationship with South Korea."
On North Korea, Fleitz forecast a potential Trump and Kim Jong-un summit this fall, citing Pyongyang's reported decision not to assist Iran during the conflict — a signal, he suggested, that the North Korean leader may be seeking an opening with Washington.
Fleitz said he would advise Trump to make the halt of North Korean weapons transfers to Russia a precondition for any talks.
![Randall Schriver, chair of the Institute for Indo-Pacific Security, speaks during a press conference during Asan Plenum, a forum hosted by the Asan Institute of Policy Studies, in Seoul on April 8. [ASAN INSTITUTE OF POLICY STUDIES]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/08/a944347a-86c4-471c-8518-4e8b24183401.jpg)
Randall Schriver, chair of the Institute for Indo-Pacific Security, speaks during a press conference during Asan Plenum, a forum hosted by the Asan Institute of Policy Studies, in Seoul on April 8. [ASAN INSTITUTE OF POLICY STUDIES]
"Since we undertook this operation without prior consultation, we should be a little forgiving of any delay in response on the part of our partners and allies," he said.
He noted that South Korea, as a democracy, faces its own domestic constraints — including the need for National Assembly consultation — that complicate any rapid show of support for U.S. military operations abroad.
The recent redeployment of U.S. Forces Korea assets, including Terminal High Altitude Area Defense interceptors, to the Middle East, he added, represents a necessary but temporary "stress" on the Indo-Pacific theater.
Schriver confirmed that South Korea is regarded as a "model ally" within the Trump administration, citing Seoul's defense spending of over 3.5 percent of GDP, its advanced arms industry, and its ongoing process of transferring wartime operational control — known as Opcon transfer — from the U.S. to South Korean commanders.
Looking ahead, he identified shipbuilding and strategic flexibility as the two pillars of alliance modernization.
"Whenever [Trump] speaks about the U.S.-ROK alliance, he almost always brings up shipbuilding cooperation," Schriver said. "We likely won't match China in numbers, but through cooperation with partners and allies, the hope is we can field a very credible naval force for deterrence in the Indo-Pacific."
Both analysts also sought to reassure Seoul on the slow pace of nuclear-powered submarine cooperation, attributing the delays to technical and regulatory complexity rather than political hesitation.
"My understanding is the discussions about nuclear-powered submarine for South Korea and all that entails [...] is still being discussed," Schriver said, citing his recent visits to the State Department and the Pentagon.
BY SEO JI-EUN [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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