On the recordDecember 11, 2018
With this resolution, the United States recognizes its longstanding and multifaceted relationship with the Republic of Korea, one that runs much deeper than the headlines of today's news may convey. Once among the world's poorest countries and devastated by war less than 70 years ago, you would find it difficult to believe the stories of Korea's past by visiting Seoul today. I led a bipartisan codel to Seoul this September to meet with members of the parliament, Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Defense Ministries, and North Korean defectors. The U.S.-South Korea partnership is so much more than a military alliance. Our partnership cultivated the Miracle on the Han River and showed the world how a nation can transition from aid to trade. As stated, South Korea is now our sixth largest trading partner and tenth largest importer of agricultural products. South Korea has lived under the threat of war since its founding, but it has managed to lift its people out of extreme poverty and become an aid donor, a leader in international fora, one of the greatest sources of investment in the United States, and a shining example to many other countries in the region. As revisionist powers challenge the vision and values that underpin the South Korean miracle, the United States needs partners more today than ever before, partners that embody and promote the open border from which we have both deeply benefited.…
