South Korea Is Stepping Up the East Asian Arms Race
Donald Trump has approved a deal with South Korea to equip its navy with nuclear-powered submarines. Combined with Trump’s aggressive posture toward China, the move will further exacerbate tensions in a volatile region.
President Donald Trump reacts as he is presented with the Grand Order of Mugunghwa and the Silla gold crown by South Korean president Lee Jae Myung at the Gyeongju National Museum on October 29, 2025, in Gyeongju, South Korea. (Andrew Harnik / Getty Images)
At the beginning of November, after a tour spent collecting tributes and flattery across East Asia, Donald Trump left behind a region that has been further destabilized by his ignorance and impulsive behavior.
The one-year trade truce between the United States and China dominated media coverage of the last leg of his itinerary, which took in the South Korean city of Gyeongju and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The brief lull in hostilities between the two powers will not address their growing economic and military rivalry.
The territorial and military ambitions of regional players such as the two Korean states and Japan are compounding the grim outlook for the region. Each player is seeking to secure its place in a shifting landscape, balanced between an old superpower in decline and a new one on the rise.
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