Will new South Korean President Lee Jae Myung chart a foreign policy course different from that of his predecessors? One finds there has been a deep continuity in South Korea’s foreign policy contours. Like his predecessors, President Lee seems to focus on promoting the country’s defense deterrence. In his media interviews, Lee has disavowed concerns that his presidency” would reverse the country’s previous reconciliation efforts with Japan and the trilateral allied cooperation” with Tokyo (and Washington).

Observers say that President Lee has no alternative but to boost his defense deterrence against the forces hostile to South Korea. In his inauguration speech in June this year, President Lee did pledge to keep open the “channels of dialogue” with North Korea to establish peace on the peninsula. Since then he has also taken steps to........

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