The United States has been pressuring South Korea to contribute to efforts aimed at restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait, which is considered strategic for the international flow of oil, natural gas, and other commodities. The Donald Trump administration has made it clear that it expects greater participation from its allies, and South Korea occupies a particularly relevant position because it is one of Asia’s largest industrial economies

Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz Conflict Directly Impacts the Global Economy—Especially China

According to power transition theory, when a rising power approaches the level of a dominant power, rivalry and instability tend to increase (Organski, 1958). In turn, offensive realism argues that states seek to maximize their relative power as a way to ensure their survival in an anarchic international system (Mearsheimer, 2001).