The U.S. President is currently in the middle of his five-day tour of Asia.
Economics will be a central part of the tour as Trump addresses trade imbalances, technology cooperation, and energy security.
Having departed Maylasia, Trump landed in Japan Monday where he met with new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and praised the strength of the U.S.-Japan relationship. He is scheduled to travel Wednesday to South Korea where he will speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Tan is the U.S. chairman of Korean Conservative Political Action Conference and senior executive director at the Center for Law and Government at Liberty University. He spoke with Jody Hice on Washington Watch last week.
“The primary power trying to displace the United States right now is the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and a key part of this battle is on the Korean Peninsula,” says Tan.
Defense expert Col. (Ret.) Bob Maginnis says the U.S.-Japan relationship is important as Japan serves as a “buffer against China.”
He believes behind-the-scenes work from Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent has laid the groundwork for a productive visit between Trump and Xi Jinping.
“Reports at this point indicate that both the Chinese and the Americans are relatively pleased with the negotiations that have been taking place and that there’s a very good chance that they’re going to reach some meaningful agreements,” Maginnis told AFN.
Maginnis: Intellectual theft still an issue
But Trump will have to address the elephant in the room.
“Intellectual property has always been a major issue for us because the Chinese have hundreds of thousands of spies. They call them students in this country in some cases, and we’re robbed blindly,” Maginnis said.
South Korea remains a key player, and shipbuilding will be a key topic.
Tan said that 83% of the shipbuilding industry is controlled by China and South Korea. The U.S. is liable to fall farther behind China regarding naval vessels and to be at risk of Chinese espionage targeting trade and military secrets if there is no reliable shipbuilding in South Korea. It is, therefore, vital that South Korea invest in U.S. shipbuilding.
Tan thinks it would be best for U.S. ships to be built through Hanwha, which purchased the Philly (Philadelphia) Shipyard in the U.S.
“There would be the legal safeguards and other safeguards to protect U.S. secrets from being stolen in the process of trying to make American shipbuilding great again. It would be very important to do that in the United States rather than in South Korea, where there are grave vulnerabilities to theft by the CCP,” states Tan.
Tan addresses the dangers of South Korea’s change in government, especially as it leans toward China. This is frightening when faced with the U.S. Indo-Pac commander saying that the China’s military is no longer engaging in military exercises relating to Taiwan. Instead, they are rehearsing to take over Taiwan.
“South Korea is a huge vulnerability because the current regime, which is very deceptive and cunning, would not come to the aid of the U.S. protecting Taiwan,” he said.
The new South Korean government is also “tilted towards North Korea, which has had its longstanding objective of taking over the whole peninsula,” says Tan.
Earlier this year South Korean voters replaced the conservative pro-U.S. Yoon Suk-yeol government with liberal Democrat Lee Jae-myung.
The new government has explicitly reopened regular diplomacy with Beijing (phone calls, trade/coordination) and emphasized managing ties with China rather than escalating confrontation.
According to Tan, there will also be trouble if South Korea chooses to not invest in the U.S., even though they have the money.
“If the current administration in South Korea decides to give $100 billion to buy offshore wind power equipment and solar equipment from China and $100 billion to fund leftist infrastructure and NGOs inside of South Korea and $50 billion in reserves, rather than investing in the United States, that would be a major issue,” explains Tan. “Over three years, those three sources alone would be $750 billion.”
A Trump meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is possible but not currently scheduled.
“During the first administration, Trump decided to step across the line separating the two Koreas. So, it is possible that the president can do something along these lines, whether he will or not. It's ultimately his choice,” says Tan.
What would make a successful trip?
With all that is happening, critics question what would make this trip successful.
“There are so many different fronts right now but strengthening deterrence in regard to Taiwan. I think moving forward very aggressively against the current leftist administration in South Korea and the CCP, I think, is very important,” says Tan.
He emphasizes that they are not trustworthy partners.
“While I think President Trump is trying to patiently and magnanimously give them more of a chance, the sooner he realizes that they are playing him, that they are seeking to deceive him, the better,” concludes Tan.
