On eve of summit, concern grows over strength of US alliance with Seoul

SEOUL — As President Trump seeks a nuclear deal with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this week in Vietnam, some in Seoul are wondering if the fate of Washington’s decades-long military alliance with South Korea could be at stake.

Much of this worry is linked to Trump’s repeated assertions that the U.S. military deployment in South Korea is too costly, and to his surprise suspension of some U.S. military exercises with South Korea — including a major summertime drill — as a concession to Kim after their first summit in Singapore last year. Added to this concern are policies by South Korea’s liberal President Moon Jae-in that critics say favor engagement with North Korea at the expense of the alliance with Washington.

The broader U.S.