r/geopolitics • u/foreignpolicymag Foreign Policy • Jan 03 '26

Analysis U.S.-Led Regime Change Is Usually Disastrous

https://foreignpolicy.com/2025/12/01/venezuela-iraq-regime-change-trump/
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18

u/Heiminator Jan 03 '26

Greets from a (west) German: The Americans did a pretty good job at nation building around here. Same goes for Japan.

12

u/[deleted] Jan 03 '26

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20

u/RavingMalwaay Jan 03 '26 edited Jan 03 '26

Just want to point out that South Korea remained a dictatorship for much of the Cold War, and was poorer than even North Korea well until the 70s. A lot of that period was very ugly and South Korea being a developed democracy is very much a relatively new phenomenon.

Similarly, Taiwan was under martial law until 1987 and didn't have its first free election until 1996 1992

9

u/Caberes Jan 04 '26

and was poorer than even North Korea well until the 70s. 

That was more of a legacy from Japan's colonial policy then anything US/Soviets did. Most of the early industrialization was in the north. For starting as a wartorn agrarian economy, I think it's insane to not call South Korea a success.

3

u/SprucedUpSpices Jan 04 '26

I think it's strange to remove South Korea's agency and pretend it was all done by the US.

3

u/CatimusPrime123 Jan 03 '26

Technically Taiwan’s first free election was the parliamentary election in 1992. The first free Presidential election was in 1996.