Sydkoreas och USA:s övning avslutas redan på fredag

Diplomatic relations between South Korea and the United States commenced in 1949. The United States helped establish the modern state of South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea, and fought on its UN-sponsored side in the Korean War (1950–1953). During the subsequent decades, South Korea experienced tremendous economic, political and military growth. To date, the United States recognized the ROK as the sole legitimate government of Korea. South Korea has a long military alliance with the United States, aiding the U.S. in every war since the Vietnam War, including the Iraq War. At the 2009 G20 London summit, then-U.S. President Barack Obama called South Korea "one of America's closest allies and greatest friends." In 1987, South Korea was among the first batch of countries to be designated as a major non-NATO ally. In June 2023, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said that he had upgraded the country's alliance with the United States to one that is "nuclear-based" in the face of North Korea's growing military threat. According to a 2026 Pew Research poll, 45% of South Koreans had a favorable view of the United States, while 55% had a negative view. According to a 2018 Gallup poll, 77% of Americans had a favorable view of South Koreans, while 22% had a negative view.