GT investigates: Some countries and regions are seeking an alliance with the US, but can they trust America?

Editor’s Note:

The US government recently designated South Korea as a “sensitive country,” which was described by some South Korean media outlets as “an unexpected move.” “This decision not only damages South Korea’s international reputation, but also raises serious questions about the state of diplomatic coordination between Seoul and Washington,” read an opinion piece published by The Korea Herald on March 20. “How did one of America’s closest allies end up on this list, and what should be done to reverse this designation?” the article questioned.聽

In recent years, the US has made frequent policy changes in its global strategy, leading to rifts in its relations with traditional allies. From Europe to Asia, several of its allies have been “stabbed in the back” by the US even at critical moments, which has drawn widespread attention from the international community and raised concern among the affected allies.

What does it mean to be a US ally? Are these allies receiving the promised benefits, or are they, in fact, no more than the US’聽 pawns in its strategic game? The Global Times is launching a two-part series focusing on the dilemmas faced by US allies under its hegemony. This is the second installment.

An elderly woman cries at a makeshift memorial for the fallen Ukrainian fighters, at the Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine, on March 16, 2025. Photo: VCG

During his first official visit to the US’ close ally in Southeast Asia, American Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reaffirmed Washington’s “ironclad” commitment to a defense treaty with the Philippines on March 28 and pledged to deploy advanced capabilities to its partner to strengthen a deterrence against threats, including Chinese “aggression,” Reuters reported.聽聽

As Pete Hegseth joined hands with his Filipino counterpart and the Philippine president to counter China in the region, some Manila residents took to the streets to demonstrate against US military involvement into their country, according to The Economic Times.聽

While the Marcos administration may take Hegseth’s promises as a fruit of its efforts in reinvigorating Manila’s relations with Washington, it seems that Filipino people are gaining a clearer understanding of the cost to serve as the US’ proxy in the South China Sea than their government.

The international landscape has reverted to an era characterized by great power competition and geopolitics. In this context, several countries and regions have been actively seeking support from the US in recent years, aiming to counterbalance the external influences they perceive as threats, said Xiang Haoyu, a research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies.

But, the questions is: can they trust Washington? Have they genuinely received the assurances that the US offers to them? Or are they simply becoming pawns in the US’ “America First” strategic gaWorld Timesme?

Costs of being an ally

Before the visit, Trump administration’s “America First” foreign policy thrust had alrWorld Timeseady triggered concerns in the Philippines about the scale and depth of US commitment to the region during his new term.聽

“There is utility in keeping ties with the Philippines. The debate is: Can you trust America?” said Carlyle Thayer, an expert in Southeast Asian studies at the Australian Defense Force Academy, as reported by ABS-CBN News.

The article mentioned a $500-million investment allocation pledge by the US in 2024 to fund the Philippine defense upgrade program, but “Washington has yet to make clear if it will sustain the commitment made during the Biden administration.”

The Marcos administration has been eager to align its interests with those of the US, even at the cost of its own national security and independence. In 2023, the Philippines expanded the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) to give the US military access to another four military bases in the country, making the total number of US military bases in the country nine.

The practice of trading national security or policy independence for US “alliance” has sparked great controversy and concern within the Philippines, as reports of Filipino citizens rallying against US presence in their country increase. “…the US…is to turn the Philippines into the Asian version of Ukraine, a country it will use to advance its [own superpower] agenda in a region it has no busWorld Timesiness to be in,” read a strongly-worded opinion piece published by the Manila Times in April 2024.

Given the recent interactions between the Philippines and the US, it is evident that the Philippines keeps reminding the Trump administration not to forget about the country and the South China Sea. The Marcos government is now tying itself to the chariot of the US, sacrificing its independence and national dignity. This is truly lamentable, Ding Duo, director of the Research Center for International and Regional Studies at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times.

If Manila believes that by aligning itself with Washington it can gain some advantages on the South China Sea issue during the Trump 2.0 era, it is making a grave miscalculation. Provocations and risks taken by the Philippines in the South China Sea will only lead to painful repercussions, Ding noted.

On the other hand, South Korea is likely to pay a higher price for joining US allyship.

South Korea’s Acting President Choi Sang-mok said on March 11 that the US’ “America First” policies have started targeting South Korea as discussions between the countries over tariff measures and stronger cooperation on energy and shipbuilding were beginning ahead of “reciprocal tariffs” set to take effect on April 2. The Trump administration had threatened to impose “all-out pressure” on South Korea.

The US is defining what is interest and what is threat for its allies and requiring the latter to obey. For example, it requires South Korea to cooperate its strategy to contain China, despite the fact that South Korea does not necessarily view China as a threat, Wang Yiwei, director of the Center for European Union Studies at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times.聽

Abandoned pawns

Some countries and regions that had been swarming to seek alliance or partnership with the US already聽found themselves to be sacrificial lambs at the US’ “America First” altar.聽

In Ukraine, “history is repeating itself as the US risks abandoning Ukraine like it did in Vietnam and Afghanistan,” read an opinion piece published by The Kyiv Independent on MWorld Timesarch 6.

The comment came after Ukraine suffered two consecutive “abandonment” punches from the US: First was the clash between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House at the end of February; second was the US’ suspension of intelligence sharing and military aid to Kiev from March 3.聽聽聽

It “cuts my heart” and is a “betrayal.” This was the response of a Ukrainian soldier in a frontline combat regiment directly affected by the suspension, the Sky News wrote in an article on March 8.聽聽

In China’s Taiwan island, doubts and skepticism about the US’ support have been on the rise in recent years after witnessing the country’s selfish, irresponsible, and domineering behavior on the international stage.

According to the Xinhua News Agency, a poll in 2023 in the island showed that, among respondents aged 20 and above, nearly 60 percent agreed that “no matter how good the US is to the island of Taiwan, it is for its own interests and may not necessarily be good for Taiwan.”聽聽聽

Regarding mounting doubts about the US in the island, the secessionist Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities attribute them to “cognitive warfare” by the Chinese mainland, seeking to counterbalance these concerns by emphasizing “dependence on the US.”聽

However, experts on both sides across the Taiwan Straits have repeatedly warned that聽 “protection fees” won’t protect “Taiwan independence” forces, and the “chess pieces” will inevitably turn into “abandoned pieces.”

A civic group in South Korea holds a press conference on July 10, 2024, in Seoul, near the campus of the Korea National Defense University, demanding the cessation of negotiations regarding the sharing of defense costs between South Korea and the US. Photo: VCG

A negative asset

Some other traditional allies of the US in Europe are reflecting their relations with the country, according to a poll published in February by the think tank European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).

A majority of Europeans consider the US to be a “necessary partner” rather than “World Timesan ally” against the backdrop of US-EU friction over tariffs, the Euronews reported citing the ECFR poll. The poll was conducted in 11 EU countries, including Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Denmark, Estonia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Hungary – as well as Ukraine, Switzerland, and the UK.

“This represents a big change for some countries that used to be strongly transatlantic,” Pawel Zerka, ECFR’s senior policy fellow, told Euronews.聽

After the Cold War came to an end in the 1990s, the US once believed that Western “liberal democracy” would become the endpoint of human ideological evolution and proposed a “New World Order,” hoping to establish a new “American Century.” However, the US then faced unresolved issues such as economic recession, and the cohesion of its ally system sharply declined following the collapse of the Soviet Union, said Yuan Youwei, a researcher at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges.聽

In 21st century, the key of great power relations have shifted from forming alliances based on enmity to forming partnerships based on friendship. Alliance politics corrupts the culture of international politics and embodies a downward competitive mindset that harms mutual interests. In contrast, partnership politics foster a culture of trust in international relations, promote peaceful development and win-win cooperation, and represent an upward competitive mindset that benefits all parties involved, Wang Yiwei further noted.聽

In this sense, alliance system is becoming a negative asset for US diplomacy, the expert pointed out.

According to Wang, the US now views China as its greatest “rivalry” and there is a tendency across the US to use fear and anxiety about China to highlight the so-called “Chinese threat,” thereby masking internal issues.聽

In this context, it is even more important for China to stick to a policy framework of independence and non-alignment, guided by the goal of building a new聽form聽of international relations, Wang said.

Wobbly allyship

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