Junotane Korea

Junotane Korea

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Junotane Korea
Trump, Iran, and Korea’s steady silent turn to greater self-reliance
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Trump, Iran, and Korea’s steady silent turn to greater self-reliance

U.S. soft power is disappearing faster than a bouffant comb-over on a windy day - and in Seoul the winds are blowing hard.

Jun 19, 2025
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Junotane Korea
Junotane Korea
Trump, Iran, and Korea’s steady silent turn to greater self-reliance
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"We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran" and "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding”. It’s plenty tough and threatening, but it’s not diplomacy, it’s hardly negotiating, and it’s certainly not serving any purpose, outside the narrow, narcissistic need for yet another Fox News sound bite.

U.S. soft power is disappearing faster than a bouffant comb-over on a windy day - and in Seoul the winds are blowing hard.

Trump’s responses on Iran lurch from maximalist threats to last-minute ambiguity, as establishment chicken-hawks like Lindey Graham and Ted Cruz push for confrontation and MAGA-aligned figures like Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon question commitment on ideological grounds. The mess casts U.S. foreign policy not as principled leadership, but as cable news-driven Fox News sound bites.

Trump tries to satisfy both and satisfies neither. The image projected is one of confused dysfunction, not decisiveness. And this image is what lands in S…

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