Alliance Transformation-Between Power And Trust

After the Cold War ,to preserve its hegemony in the world, the United States pushed adjustment and transformation of its alliances around the world actively . The transformation of NATO, the adjustment of U.S. Asia-Pacific alliances, and the rise of the current Volunteer Alliance are typical Representative of the great alliance transformation. Because the adjustment, change and transformation of these alliances have had a profound impact on the international situation and international system. it is necessary to strengthen study on the Alliance transformation.The Alliance transformation is actually an product of the change , interactive of structural power and Alliance Trust. Through alliance transformation, the Alliances re-coordinated their benefits, Re-setting their functions, re-adjustment their relations, re-negotiation their strategies and so on. On the conditions of security threat mitigation and security fields expansion, the limitations of the traditional single -military alliance continuously arise, toward to the transformation of a diversification, comprehensive strategic alliance is a inevitable trend. However, the academic research on the theory of alliance transformation is rare, mostly interpretation from international strategic, international environmental changes, which can not provide sufficient theoretical explanatory power. Most existing research focused on NATO's transformation, the single sample will inevitably result in the bias of theory. The academic mainly from system, security and identity perspective to analyze the Transformation of NATO, but for the U.S. bilateral asymmetric alliances in Asia- Pacific region is not entirely applicable.This paper want to on the interactive perspective of "structural power - Alliance Trust" to study alliance transformation, which not only to grasp the core structure of alliances, but also noted the inherent dynamic process. By the design of the overall analytical framework of "structure - process "to analyze alliance transformation is innovation of this dissertation. Structural power mainly comprise the security structure, political structure, economic structure and cultural structures, of which each structure has three to four indicators as its internal parameters. Structural power is the dominant factor of alliance dilemma, which will also affect the alliance trust. The alliance trust can be divided into non-trust, Instrumental trust and emotional -trust. Alliance Trust is not consistent with structural power, as the alliance goes, the conflicts between the two will become more and more. From the interactive perspective of structural power - alliance trust , which focus the Product effect of both hard and soft factors. Through the complexity, uncertainty, expected - control, accountability, and the role of the main object, Structural power affect alliance Trust. The concentration and dispersion, polarization and Averaging and the changes of weight of all parameters of Structural power, which combined with the changes of Alliance Trust include non- trust, instrumental trust, emotional trust may be result into the loose ,weakening , consolidation or strengthening of alliance.US-ROK alliance is a very important case to verify the theory of alliance transformation. Now, the US-ROK alliance is in the course of alliance transformation, and its development will profoundly affect international situation in Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia.During more than 50 years'development, the US-ROK alliance can be divided into formation period, loose period, strengthening period and transformation period. In the different periods, each parameter of structural power has changed in different proportion, whose overall trend as follows: the security structure of the US-ROK alliance has always been the dominant factor but its effect is weakening; intermediary role of political structure is growing; economic structure Continue to strengthen and increase its impact on alliance; culture structure continue to show its potential effect. Accordingly, Alliance Trust is also changes at the same time. During the alliance formation period, there is mutual emotional trust between US-ROK, then change into emotional - instrumental trust after "Nixon shock". For strategic adjustment and strength changes of both sides after cold war, there is mutual instrumental trust between US-ROK alliance now. Due to the impact of alliance trust changes, the US-ROK alliance has become strategic alliance from military alliance.Because of the interaction influence of Structural power and alliance trust, US-ROK alliance will inevitable changes into comprehensive, diverse alliance. Based on the interactive perspective of "structural power - Alliance Trust," the U.S. Asia-Pacific alliances will adjust, but the new alliance system with high intensity and high trust is difficult to establish. In the future, the U.S. Asia-Pacific alliances will show an increase in the interaction within the alliance system, areas of cooperation will expand, the role of military will weaken, a loose network of Asia-Pacific security partners are likely to form, but NATO version of the Asia-Pacific alliance system is difficult to establish. These need to pay attention to effect of economic factors in the development and transformation of U.S. Asia-Pacific alliances . China is an important country in the Asia-Pacific region, and she also has important strategic interests in this region. The transformation of U.S. Asia-Pacific alliances will have a major impact on China's peaceful development strategy, So China need pay attention to the adjustment, change and transformation of U.S. Asia-Pacific alliances. China will not only strengthen the construction of its own power, but also need to strengthen its communication and cooperation with United States in Asia-Pacific region, weak these military color and actively promote these transition to regional multilateral security mechanism.