Compass Points - South Korea

Miracle on the Han River

Compass Points - South Korea

Miracle on the Han River

February 24, 2024

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While China is a global power spreading its influence around the world, it is foremost a constant, looming, and oppressive regional power in the Pacific. The US military has designated China as the pacing challenge. There is constant discussion, as there should be, about how to protect Taiwan from a Chinese invasion. Yet, somehow in all the discussions, South Korea is hardly mentioned.

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Seoul is roughly 300 miles from Beijing.

Taipei is roughly 1,000 miles from Beijing.

If China is going to attack Taiwan, it cannot leave the dagger of South Korea pointed directly at Beijing.

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Like Taiwan, South Korea has built itself into an industrial powerhouse. A review by the World Economic Forum reports,

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Once one of the poorest countries following the Korean War in the 1950s, South Korea has rebuilt its economy from scratch. With barely any natural resources available, the only asset that Korea has had to rely on is its people, who have acted as a cornerstone of the extraordinary economic growth known as the Miracle on the Han River. The country’s number one focus was to elevate education, and within just 10 years following the Korean War, illiteracy plummeted from 78% to 4%.

In parallel, the country put all its efforts into maximizing export products, starting with simple items such as garments, fibre and footwear. As exports picked up, the government focused on building more sophisticated hardware-based products for heavy manufacturing industries such as automotive, TVs, steel, mobile devices and semiconductors. At the same time, the government has strengthened its collaborative ties to support a select number of front runners in these industries, which led to the creation of Chaeobols – family led large industrial conglomerates.

While highly successful, this choice has had side effects including the uneven distribution of wealth and power and the creation of classes among the population. Economically speaking, South Korea has risen to become the 11th largest economy and the fifth largest exporter of goods and services globally. Samsung and LG have become the top display makers worldwide; Hyundai and Kia combined are third in vehicle production numbers. In July 2021, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) upgraded Korea’s status to a developed economy.

-- World Economic Forum - "This is how South Korea can become a global innovation hub" 31 Jan 2022

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In the summer of 1950 when South Korea was attacked by North Korea, South Korea, the US, and the world were caught off guard. North Korea overran South Korean forces and drove the length of the peninsula. US Marines arrived quickly and played a key role in stopping the North Korean advance at the Pusan Perimeter.

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Then, for his brilliant Inchon amphibious landing, General MacArthur called on Marines to take the lead, including the 1st Marine Regiment commanded by Chesty Puller. Rapidly, Seoul was retaken, the North Korea invasion force in the south collapsed, and UN forces drove north into North Korea. At that point, in another surprise, Chinese forces attacked in strength across the Yalu River and down into South Korea.

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China has attacked South Korea before, and it can do so again. Any modern attack by China on Taiwan would need to be paired with an attack by North Korean and Chinese forces on South Korea. What are the Force Design Marine Littoral Regiments going to do to stop North Korean and Chinese forces sweeping, once again, down the Korean peninsula? How are a few precision missiles going to stop the Chinese hordes?

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Seoul is roughly 300 miles from Beijing.

Taipei is roughly 1,000 miles from Beijing.

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If China is going to attack Taiwan, it cannot leave the dagger of South Korea pointed directly at Beijing. They call it the "Miracle on the Han River" that turned South Korea into a worldwide industrial powerhouse. It will take another miracle today to save South Korea from another combined attack from North Korea and China.

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After World War II, there was a tremendous draw-down in US forces, including the Marine Corps. The attack by North Korea was a surprise to military planners and defense experts. When the crisis came, the Marine Corps was still "most ready when the Nation was least ready." The combined arms force of Marines quickly arrived, steadied the situation at Pusan, and then led the amphibious landing at Inchon that entirely changed the fighting.

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Can Marines do the same today? Just as in years past, the US today needs forward deployed, combined arms, crisis response forces that can arrive at the scene of any crisis ready to deter, assist, and fight. Then, those same forces must be able to rapidly augment, composite, and expand into an even larger, more capable force. This used to be the focus of the Marine Corps and the always ready capability the Marine Corps provided to the Nation. Over the last few years, unfortunately, the Marine Corps has become distracted. Somehow the Marine Corps lost some of its faith in its role as the world's premier crisis response force. The time for distraction is over. It is time for Marines once again to focus on global crisis response.

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It was a surprise in 1950 when North Korea attacked. Somewhere today, a similar enemy force is plotting a surprise attack on one of the US allies. When that new attack comes, the nation that is attacked, the US, and the world will once again ask, "Where are the Marines?"