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US President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Gimhae International Airport in Busan on Oct. 30, 2025, after wrapping up a two-day trip to South Korea. (AP/Yonhap)

Back in June of last year, when US President Donald Trump was still only running for office, he said something interesting about the US’ international role. When asked by a Bloomberg Businessweek reporter about whether the US should defend Taiwan against China, Trump responded, “Taiwan should pay us for defense.” 

“You know, we’re no different than an insurance company. Taiwan doesn’t give us anything,” he added. 

His contention was that the US is taking responsibility for Taiwan’s security but that Taiwan isn’t offering anything in return, like a customer who doesn’t pay his insurance bills. 

As with most of Trump’s remarks, these comments were a lie and contradictory. Following World War II, it is true that the US offered many “public goods” in its reconstruction of the world’s economy and security apparatus to the benefit of many countries. These public goods include the establishment of an international trade order and anchor currency, the guarantee of free navigation, and a widespread security umbrella. 

However, it’s also true that the “insurance company” of the US has received plenty of insurance payments and enjoyed immense profits. Most countries in the world have invested untold sums in the US, turning the US into the world’s financial hub. This has allowed Americans to take out loans at low interest rates and maintain a high standard of living. 

In return for its security umbrella, the US has received money for stationing its troops and sold its weapons for an immense profit. Since 1947, the US’ GDP per capita has increased by 355% as of last year. Even now, the per capita GNI is north of US$85,000, making it the richest country in the world. By all accounts, the US has enjoyed a “win-win” arrangement. 

However, Trump’s misguided perception is turning into arguments that the US is being “unfairly used” or even “exploited” by its allies. Trump, of course, hasn’t had much to say about how a country could become the richest country in the world, a technological superpower, and enjoy the highest growth rate among advanced nations while being exploited by its allies. He is no doubt aware of the excessive benefits that the US has enjoyed as a hegemon and is deliberately hiding them. 

It’s also part of his rhetoric to justify his exploitative trade negotiations designed to bring more allied wealth to the US. It’s true that the US is suffering from massive fiscal deficits and the collapse of its traditional manufacturing industry. These are domestic issues to be solved internally. But instead, he is blaming China and America’s own allies, levying tariffs, and demanding astronomical investments. At the same time, he is lowering taxes on Americans. This year’s tax cuts amount to around US$4.5 trillion.  

Trump is trying to utilize the US insurance company’s monopoly to extract high fees from its customers. He is trying to rake in trillions of won from Korean companies through tariffs while pressuring the government to invest US$350 billion in the US. That’s not all. He’s demanding additional purchases of US weapons and forcing purchases of US LNG over Middle Eastern supplies, despite American supplies being more expensive. This is reminiscent of gangsters demanding protection money from shops and implying something bad will happen if they refuse. 

In exchange for access to its market and its security umbrella, the US is demanding trillions in tariff revenue, and countries that don’t accept it will not have their tariff rates lowered. It’s no exaggeration to call this a protection racket. 

The call for reconstructing American manufacturing, deterring China, and embarking on a great cause under the MAGA slogan may be sincere. However, based on what we’ve seen so far, there is no room for allies in the MAGA movement. Because they’ve been used and exploited, now they’re looking to collect. That’s just what fairness means in Trump’s worldview. 

This is why he’s talking about Korea’s US$350 billion as if it’s something the US is entitled to. The investment could economically weaken a key ally or put it into a crisis, but he doesn’t seem bothered. Back in September, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick acknowledged that Japan has to “blow up their balance sheet” to fund its US$550 billion investment in the US. His remarks are an admission of Trump’s attitude. Just as the Plaza Accord of 1985 and the US-Japan chip agreements put the Japanese economy in a crisis, the US is engaging in a zero-sum calculation to weaken competitors economies so it can get a leg up. 

That is the game that Trump is playing now. That is why the US is destroying one of its biggest strengths, its alliance network. Extending an olive branch to China while punishing allies isn’t going to work. That is not the way to defeat China, the world’s biggest manufacturer and now a military superpower. 

To hedge against the “US risk,” allies in Asia and Europe are already diversifying their trade networks and reviewing alternatives in the form of self-reliance in national defense. Does Trump know that Xi Jinping is getting the last laugh?

By Park Hyun, editorial writer

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