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Following the impeachment of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, the United States reaffirmed its support for South Korea.

Some shit you should know before you read: Two weeks ago, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shocked the nation by declaring martial law in a surprise late-night television address, citing alleged threats from “anti-state forces” and accusing the opposition Democratic Party of sympathizing with North Korea. He justified the move by arguing that it was necessary to counter perceived political destabilization, particularly the opposition’s motions to impeach top prosecutors and reject a government budget proposal. President Yoon’s move was met with immediate backlash. Within hours, lawmakers stormed past soldiers into the National Assembly to unanimously strike down the decree, forcing Yoon to revoke the order and triggering widespread protests and demands for his resignation. Last week, President Yoon was impeached after surviving a previous impeachment attempt.

What’s going on: Shortly after President Yoon was impeached, President Biden called Acting President and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. In a brief statement, The White House said, “President Biden expressed his appreciation for the resiliency of democracy and the rule of law in the ROK and reaffirmed the ironclad commitment of the United States to the people of the ROK. The two leaders discussed the tremendous progress we have made toward further strengthening the U.S.-ROK Alliance in recent years, and President Biden expressed his confidence that the Alliance will remain the linchpin for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region during Acting President Han’s tenure.”

The statement from the White House was echoed by State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, who said, “The United States reiterates our support for the Republic of Korea (ROK), its citizens and democratic processes, and the rule of law.  Our commitment to the U.S.-ROK Alliance is ironclad.  In recent years, that Alliance has made enormous strides, and the United States looks forward to partnering with the ROK on achieving further progress.  We stand ready to continue this work with Acting President Han Duck-soo and the ROK government to advance our mutual interests and shared values.”

Digging deeper: This all comes as the US-South Korea alliance is arguably one of the most critical partnerships for the US in the Indo-Pacific region. Hosting approximately 28,500 US troops, South Korea serves as a strategic foothold for American military presence in East Asia, enabling rapid response to regional threats, particularly from North Korea and China. The alliance is also backed up by advanced US military technologies that the US shares with South Korea, which includes the deployment of THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) systems and South Korea’s acquisition of state-of-the-art F-35A fighter jets.