Way back in May of 2013, geopolitical analyst Doug Bandow wrote an incendiary, yet not widely read, column for the conservative think tank the Cato Institute about South Korea s defense posture and its dependence on the United States for military preparedness. The title, and you won t believe it: “South Korea: Close Friend of the U.S., and a Defense Welfare Queen.” The subtitle: “Even if Seoul is improbably believed to be an essential ally, it does not require U.S. defense subsidies.”