# Seoul, thank you for reinforcing the Western front in Ankara

> Introduction: a letter to an ally finally ready to show up

- Author: Maxime Marquette
- Publisher: MadMax (https://mad-max.co)
- Section: Open letter
- Published: 2026-07-04
- Canonical URL: https://mad-max.co/en/article/a-seoul-merci-de-venir-renforcer-le-front-occidental-a-ankara

## Introduction: a letter to an ally finally ready to show up

### Dear President Lee Jae-myung

Mr. **President**, I am writing you this open letter because your decision to attend the **NATO summit** in **Ankara**, on **July 7 and 8, 2026**, deserves to be praised loudly and clearly. According to **Reuters**, your presence was confirmed alongside an official visit to **Mongolia**, a diplomatic trip that sends a clear signal to **Pyongyang**, **Beijing**, and **Moscow**.

In a **world** where **Western democracies** must, more than ever, close ranks, your attendance at this summit confirms what many of us have hoped for months: that **South Korea** will no longer simply watch from a distance the tensions between the **Atlantic Alliance** and its authoritarian adversaries, but will choose to actively take part.

### Why this letter, why now

I am writing this piece as an open letter because I believe certain diplomatic gestures deserve to be addressed directly, without filter, to the people making them. Your presence in **Ankara** is not a protocol detail: it is a strategic choice that deserves to be named and applauded.

This letter relies exclusively on facts reported by recognized news agencies and government sources, not on assumptions or personal speculation about your actual intentions.

*I don't know you personally, Mr. President, but I know the importance of the symbol you are setting by attending this summit. In the current context, every gesture of rapprochement with the West counts double.*

## The IP4 group, a bridge between two oceans

### Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand

Your attendance confirms the invitation extended for several years now to the leaders of the **IP4** group, which brings together **Japan**, **South Korea**, **Australia**, and **New Zealand**. This **format**, born of a **desire** to bring **NATO** closer to its Indo-Pacific partners, takes on particular meaning in **2026**, amid rising tensions in the **South China Sea** and on the Korean peninsula.

The **Hudson Institute** has noted that this IP4-NATO partnership remains caught between **ambition** and **restraint**, with Europeans sometimes hesitant to commit too openly in Asia for fear of provoking **Beijing**, while Indo-Pacific partners seek concrete guarantees rather than empty symbols.

### An alliance of circumstance turned strategic necessity

What began merely as circumstantial cooperation is becoming, summit after summit, a genuine architecture of **shared security** between the **Atlantic** and the **Pacific**, driven by the shared conviction that democracies must coordinate their responses to authoritarian regimes.

This gradual evolution reflects a major strategic realization: European security and Asian security are no longer isolated theaters, but interconnected fronts against an increasingly coordinated **authoritarian axis** linking **Russia**, **China**, **Iran**, and **North Korea**.

*I'll say it plainly: the idea that the Atlantic and the Pacific are two separate theaters is a dangerous fiction. Pyongyang is sending soldiers to Ukraine, Beijing is economically arming Russia. The IP4 isn't a diplomatic gadget, it's a necessity.*

## The North Korean threat, backdrop to this trip

### An unpredictable regime at Seoul's doorstep

Your presence in **Ankara** cannot be separated from the daily reality your country faces: an unpredictable **North Korean regime**, equipped with a growing nuclear arsenal, and now directly involved in the conflict in **Ukraine** alongside **Russia** through the sending of troops and munitions.

This **military cooperation** between **Pyongyang** and **Moscow** turns the North Korean question into a **direct issue** tied to European security, which fully justifies your presence at a summit historically centered on the **Atlantic**.

### An intelligence exchange that benefits everyone

By taking part in this summit, **South Korea** can share with Western allies unique expertise on North Korean military capabilities, precisely at the moment those same capabilities are being deployed on European soil as part of Russia's aggression against Ukraine.

This **two-way intelligence sharing** is one of the most concrete and least publicized benefits of this kind of diplomatic rapprochement between allies who are geographically distant but strategically linked.

*Seeing North Korean soldiers fight in Ukraine alongside the Russian army would have seemed unreal five years ago. Today, it is the clearest proof that Seoul's security and Kyiv's security have become inseparable.*

## China, a shadow cast over this summit

### Beijing is watching, Beijing is worried

It would be naive to think **Beijing** is watching this rapprochement between **Seoul** and **NATO** with indifference. **China** has long viewed the growing involvement of its Asian neighbors in Western security structures as a direct provocation, one that could justify strengthening its own regional military posture.

This **Chinese unease**, far from being an argument against your participation, is actually its best justification: a strategic adversary that fears coordination among democracies confirms, through that very reaction, the relevance of that coordination.

### A systemic rivalry that goes beyond Taiwan

The **rivalry** between the **West** and **China** is no longer limited to the question of **Taiwan** alone, as crucial as that is. It now encompasses control of strategic supply chains, technological dominance, and normative influence over tomorrow's international order.

In this broader context, every strengthened alliance between democracies, including the one between **South Korea** and **NATO**, represents a necessary counterweight to China's hegemonic ambitions in the Indo-Pacific region.

*I firmly believe China remains the greatest structural threat to the West, even more so than Russia in the long run. Every strengthened tie between Asian and Western democracies looks to me like a rational response to that reality.*

## The Ankara summit, a strategic crossroads

### Why Turkey as host

The **choice of Ankara** as host city for this **NATO** summit is not incidental. **Turkey** occupies a pivotal geographic position between **Europe**, the **Middle East**, and the **Caucasus**, a strategic crossroads particularly relevant as the Alliance seeks to expand its dialogue beyond the traditional European theater alone.

According to **Yeni Safak** and the **Anadolu** agency, this summit must also address the question of **burden-sharing** among Allies, a sensitive topic ever since **Washington** announced a reduction in its direct military commitments on European soil.

### A packed agenda between deterrence and rearmament

Beyond the **symbolic presence** of Indo-Pacific leaders, this summit must decide on **concrete matters**: the target now set at **5% of GDP** in defense spending for Alliance members, as well as the distribution of military capabilities left vacant by the partial American withdrawal.

These technical discussions, though less spectacular than diplomatic symbols, will concretely determine **NATO's** real ability to deter its adversaries in the years ahead.

*We often remember the summit photos, the protocol handshakes. But it's the defense spending figures and capability distributions that will determine whether the West remains credible in the face of its adversaries.*

## The Chosun newspaper and the South Korean reading of this trip

### An openly firm diplomacy

The **South Korean daily** **Chosun** presented your trip as confirmation of the **diplomacy of firmness** adopted by your government in the face of repeated provocations from **Pyongyang**, an approach that stands in contrast to the more conciliatory stances of some previous administrations.

This domestic reading of your trip underscores just how closely South Korean foreign policy remains tied to the domestic perception of the North Korean threat, a factor that weighs heavily on every major diplomatic decision made by your government.

### A political bet that carries risks

This rapprochement with **NATO** is not without domestic political risk for you, Mr. President, in a country where public opinion remains divided on the desirable level of engagement with Western alliances that are geographically distant from the Korean peninsula.

This bet, however, seems consistent with a clear-eyed assessment of contemporary threats, which no longer respect strict regional boundaries between Europe and Northeast Asia.

*I respect the political courage this kind of trip represents, especially in a country where public opinion is not unanimously behind such a visible rapprochement with the West.*

## The historical precedents of this cooperation

### A trajectory underway for several summits

Your trip to **Ankara** did not come out of nowhere. It fits into a trajectory that began over several consecutive **NATO** summits, where **IP4** group leaders were gradually brought into the Alliance's strategic discussions, first symbolically, then in an increasingly substantial way.

This gradual progression illustrates a deep structural evolution within **NATO** itself, which now explicitly recognizes the interconnection between European security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

### A signal of continuity despite changes in government

The fact that this cooperation continues despite political turnover, both in **South Korea** and among **NATO** member states, demonstrates that it rests on lasting strategic interests rather than fleeting partisan preferences.

This continuity is in itself a mark of credibility for all the partners involved, in an international context where the stability of diplomatic commitments has become a rare and precious commodity.

*What reassures me most about this trajectory is its continuity despite changes in government. An alliance that survives political turnover is an alliance built on something more than short-term electoral calculations.*

## Trump and the Western military posture

### An American president pushing for burden-sharing

It must be acknowledged honestly: the **pressure exerted** by the **Trump** administration for European and Indo-Pacific allies to take on a larger share of the collective military burden has, paradoxically, accelerated this kind of broader strategic rapprochement.

This American pressure, often criticized for its rhetorical bluntness, has nonetheless produced a real structuring effect: it forced countries like **South Korea** to clarify their strategic positioning toward the **Atlantic Alliance** more quickly.

### Crediting what works, without complacency

On strictly military and deterrence grounds, this administration deserves credit for accelerating a **Western rearmament** dynamic that many previously judged too slow given the urgency of the threats posed by **Russia**, **China**, **Iran**, and **North Korea**.

This recognition, however, must not turn into blanket approval of all of this administration's policies, particularly on domestic issues far removed from the sphere of collective Western defense.

*I don't particularly like the way Washington has sometimes imposed this pressure on its allies. But I recognize that, strictly on the military front, this firmness has produced concrete results that soft diplomacy hadn't achieved in years.*

## Defense companies, the quiet big winners

### A booming arms market

This **strategic rapprochement** between **NATO** and its Indo-Pacific partners directly benefits the **Western defense industry**, amid growing orders for military equipment from countries seeking to rapidly strengthen their capabilities against regional threats.

**South Korea** itself has established itself in recent years as a leading arms exporter, notably to several European countries eager to diversify their military supply sources away from exclusive dependence on American or French industries.

### An industrial interdependence that strengthens the alliance

This growing industrial interdependence between Europe and **South Korea** serves as an additional bond for this strategic relationship, beyond the diplomatic symbols alone seen at international summits like the one in **Ankara**.

When concrete economic interests add to strategic convergence, alliances gain resilience against the political uncertainties that might otherwise weaken them over the long term.

*Money and arms contracts are never very romantic to bring up in a diplomatic letter, but I prefer an alliance strengthened by concrete interests over one held together only by good intentions.*

## What this visit says about a changing world order

### The end of siloed geographic theaters

Your trip to **Ankara** symbolizes a broader transformation of the global geopolitical order: the gradual end of **siloed geographic theaters** where Europe, Asia, and the Middle East were treated as separate files by Western chancelleries.

This **transformation** reflects an **unavoidable strategic reality**: authoritarian regimes are already coordinating their efforts on a global scale, which logically forces democracies to respond with an equally global coordination of their own security policies.

### A multipolar world that demands flexible alliances

In this emerging multipolar world, traditional rigid alliances centered on a single geographic region are gradually becoming obsolete against threats that, themselves, respect no strict regional borders.

This reality demands a new strategic flexibility from Western democracies and their Asian partners, of which your presence at this summit is precisely a concrete and welcome illustration.

*I believe we are witnessing the end of a world where European and Asian files could be handled separately. Your presence in Ankara is just one symptom among others of this global geopolitical realignment.*

## Critical voices and their legitimate reservations

### An excessive expansion of NATO, according to some

Not everyone welcomes this **evolution** with the same enthusiasm. Some analysts, notably those cited by the **Hudson Institute**, believe **NATO** risks stretching itself too thin strategically by multiplying extraregional partnerships, to the detriment of its core mission of collective European defense.

This criticism deserves to be taken seriously, because it points to a real risk of strategic dilution if the Alliance fails to clearly articulate priorities between its core European mission and its broader Indo-Pacific partnerships.

### A balance still to be found

I do not claim this tension is already resolved. **NATO** will, in the months and years ahead, need to precisely clarify the nature of its engagement with partners like **South Korea**, without diluting its deterrence capability against **Russia** on the European continent.

This delicate balance between strategic openness and resource concentration will likely be one of the most defining debates of the Atlantic Alliance's upcoming summits.

*I'd rather honestly admit this tension than pretend everything fits together perfectly. An alliance that ignores its own internal contradictions always ends up paying for them more dearly at the worst possible moment.*

## The South Korean example for other Asian partners

### A model watched closely in Tokyo and Canberra

Your **decision** to attend this summit will be watched very closely by **Japan** and **Australia**, two other members of the **IP4** group, who may draw on it to calibrate their own future level of engagement with the **Atlantic Alliance**.

This regional emulation dynamic could gradually turn the **IP4** format into a genuinely coordinated bloc, capable of speaking with a more unified voice against the pressure exerted by **China** and **North Korea** in the Indo-Pacific region.

### A responsibility that extends beyond your national borders

By traveling to **Ankara**, you carry a responsibility that goes beyond South Korea's national interests alone: that of demonstrating that active engagement with Western democracies is not only possible, but strategically worthwhile for a country facing direct existential threats.

This responsibility, I believe, honors you more than it constrains you, at a historic moment when diplomatic courage has become rare among world leaders.

*If your example pushes Tokyo and Canberra to commit even more firmly, this trip to Ankara will have had a multiplier effect far greater than its immediate symbolic reach suggests today.*

## What Ukraine is watching from Kyiv

### Indirect but real support for the Ukrainian cause

From **Kyiv**, this rapprochement between **South Korea** and **NATO** is being followed with particular interest, as it indirectly strengthens the international coalition supporting **Ukraine** against Russian aggression, notably through increased intelligence sharing on North Korean military capabilities deployed on the European theater.

Every strengthening of Western coordination, even one involving partners geographically distant from the conflict, helps further isolate **Vladimir Putin** on the international stage and weaken his alliance axis with **Pyongyang** and **Tehran**.

### An expanding democratic solidarity

President **Volodymyr Zelensky** has himself often stressed the global, not merely European, nature of the fight for **Ukraine's** survival against Russian aggression, a reading your presence at this summit indirectly reinforces.

This expanded democratic solidarity, linking Europe, Asia, and North America, is precisely the kind of united front authoritarian regimes fear most, because it severely limits their ability to divide their democratic adversaries.

*Zelensky has repeated it tirelessly: this war does not pit Ukraine against Russia alone, it pits the democratic world against a coalition of authoritarian regimes. Your presence in Ankara confirms, once again, the accuracy of that reading.*

## The role of Canada and other peripheral members

### A dynamic that goes beyond the major players alone

Beyond the spotlight on **Washington**, **Brussels**, or **Seoul**, this **Ankara** summit also confirms the growing importance of peripheral members like **Canada**, which has itself increased its contributions to **NATO's** rapid reaction forces in response to the partial American withdrawal.

This broader mobilization, involving countries sometimes considered secondary in major strategic balances, shows just how much **collective Western defense** now rests on a far broader base than in the past.

### A lesson in solidarity for the whole Alliance

This expanded solidarity, from **Canada** to **South Korea**, demonstrates that the burden of **Western defense** can indeed be shared more equitably, provided the political will genuinely exists among each of the partners involved.

This is precisely the more equitable burden-sharing **Washington** has demanded for years, and which finally seems to be materializing as this **Ankara** summit approaches.

*We often forget the contributions of the Alliance's peripheral members in this kind of story. Yet it is precisely the sum of these less visible contributions that will make, or fail to make, the difference against our common adversaries.*

## Conclusion: thank you for clearly choosing your side

### A gesture that will remain in diplomatic memory

Mr. President, your decision to travel to **Ankara** for this **NATO** summit will stand as a defining gesture in the recent history of relations between **South Korea** and the **Atlantic Alliance**, at a moment when strategic clarity matters more than ever against increasingly coordinated adversaries.

This gesture alone will not resolve tensions with **Pyongyang** nor neutralize **Beijing's** regional ambitions, but it sends an essential signal of cohesion among democracies at a moment when that very cohesion is exactly what your common adversaries fear most.

### A call to keep moving in this direction

I invite you, Mr. President, to continue on this path of active engagement with Western partners, not out of submission to any outside pressure, but out of strategic clear-sightedness in a world where isolated democracies become more vulnerable targets than coordinated ones.

History may well remember this **Ankara** summit as another milestone in building a truly global democratic front, capable of standing firm against the combined ambitions of **Russia**, **China**, **Iran**, and **North Korea**.

*I'll close this letter with honest sincerity: I don't know whether history will remember this summit as a major turning point or just one diplomatic episode among many. But I know that silence would have been worse than this gesture, however imperfect it may be.*

**By Maxime Marquette, columnist**

## Columnist's transparency note

### Editorial stance

I am not a journalist but a **columnist and analyst**. My expertise lies in observing and analysing the geopolitical, economic and strategic dynamics that shape our world. My work is to take political strategies apart, to understand global economic movements, to put the decisions of international actors in context and to offer analytical perspectives on the changes that are redefining our societies.

I do not claim the cold objectivity of traditional journalism, which stops at reporting facts. **I claim analytical clarity**, rigorous interpretation and a deep understanding of the complex issues that concern us all. My role is to give meaning to the facts, to place them in their historical and strategic context, and to offer a critical reading of events.

### Method and sources

This text keeps the basic distinction between **verified facts and interpretive analysis**. The rule never changes: a factual claim is published only when a verifiable source supports it, and the sources this article actually used are listed under **Sources**, never here.

**Primary source families** used by the publication, when the story has them: official statements from governments and international institutions, public statements by political leaders, reports from intergovernmental organisations, dispatches from recognised international news agencies.

**Secondary source families**: specialised publications, internationally recognised news media, analyses from established research institutions, reports from industry organisations.

When an article cites statistical, economic or geopolitical data, it comes from the institutions that produce it (intergovernmental organisations, central banks, national statistics offices), and the exact institution is named under **Sources**.

### Nature of the analysis

The analyses, interpretations and perspectives in the analytical sections of this article are a **critical, contextual synthesis** based on the information available, the trends observed and the expert comments cited in the sources consulted.

My role is to interpret these facts, to set them in the context of today's geopolitical and economic dynamics, and to give them a coherent meaning within the larger story of the changes shaping our time. These analyses reflect expertise built through continuous observation of international affairs and an understanding of the strategic mechanisms that drive global actors.

This article describes a documented state of affairs on its publication date, not a prediction: later developments may shift its outlook. No update is promised in advance; when an article is corrected or completed, the change is dated in the text.

## Sources

### Primary sources

- [Reuters, South Korean president confirmed for NATO summit in Ankara — July 3, 2026](https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/south-koreas-president-attend-nato-summit-ankara-visit-mongolia-2026-07-03/)

- [Anadolu Agency, President Lee to attend NATO summit in Turkiye — July 3, 2026](https://aa.com.tr/en/world/south-korean-president-lee-to-attend-nato-summit-in-turkiye/3984978)

### Secondary sources

- [Yeni Safak, South Korean president to attend NATO summit in Turkiye — July 3, 2026](http://en.yenisafak.com/world/south-korean-president-to-attend-nato-summit-in-turkiye-3720342)

- [Chosun, coverage of South Korean diplomacy ahead of the NATO summit — July 3, 2026](https://www.chosun.com/english/national-en/2026/07/03/JQOECYAFBNCWJOCHLIOBUJU4DE/)

- [Decode39, analysis of the IP4 format between NATO and its Indo-Pacific partners — 2026](https://decode39.com/15060/ip4/)

- [Hudson Institute, NATO and the IP4 caught between ambition and strategic restraint — 2026](https://www.hudson.org/defense-strategy/nato-ip4-caught-between-ambition-restraint)

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Source: Maxime Marquette, MadMax. When citing, name the author and link https://mad-max.co/en/article/a-seoul-merci-de-venir-renforcer-le-front-occidental-a-ankara