Seoul should brace for Washington's possible adoption of 'strategic flexibility' for US troops here, expert says
Concerns are mounting in South Korea over a potential shift in the role of the 28,500 US troops stationed here amid evolving nuclear and missile threats from North Korea.
Such worries have existed for decades, but have been exacerbated following US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January, experts noted. The possibility of the second Trump administration diverting some of the USFK resources to help defend Taiwan against threats from China has fed worries that it would leave the South more vulnerable to the North’s provocations, they added.
“There are growing concerns over the potential scenario that Washington would leverage part of the US Forces stationed on the Korean Peninsula for broader regional security roles rather than limiting their role to deterring the North,” Yu Ji-hoon, director of external cooperation at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, said via phone.
The allies have repeatedly stressed that the primary role of United States Forces Korea is to contribute to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
“The concerns are also tied to the fact that Korea’s currently stuck in a state of political turmoil due to President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment and that it has been apparently failing to prove itself to the US as a reliable ally,” he added.
In line with Yu’s remarks, a report released by the US-based Brookings Institution on Friday noted the concerns here, saying that “South Koreans have expressed increasing concern about the spillover effects of a Taiwan Strait conflict onto the Korean Peninsula.” A possible war over the Taiwan Strait, which might require USFK to be deployed outside the peninsula, “would leave South Korea more vulnerable to North Korean provocations,” the report pointed out.
As Washington could adopt “strategic flexibility” regarding the US troops stationed here, Seoul must brace for the potential risks that such a move could bring to the peninsula, according to Yu. Seoul should also be vigilant about the demands the Trump administration could make, including that South Korea pay a greater share of the cost of stationing US troops here, he added.
“To handle China-related contingencies, there is a high chance that Washington could ask Seoul to define and step up its role as an ally by paying a larger share of the cost of stationing the US troops here as well as the deployment of strategic assets on the peninsula,” Yu said. “It is crucial for Seoul to wisely approach the matter as we need to maintain our security posture based on the decadesold alliance with the US.”
The Brookings Institution report advised South Korea to be ready to “play a larger role in the Indo-Pacific, including on the Taiwan Strait, and coordinate its strategy with the United States and other allies and partners in the region.”
On Sunday, the Washington Post released an exclusive report, citing a secret internal guidance distributed throughout the Pentagon in mid-March, that the Trump administration plans to “reorient” the US military to prioritize deterring China’s seizure of Taiwan and shoring up homeland defense. The US would pressure allies in Europe, the Middle East and East Asia to increase their role in deterring risks tied to Russia, North Korea and Iran, according to the report signed by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Observers have recently pointed to a series of developments surrounding the US-South Korea alliance as signs of security and diplomacy risks to Seoul.
South Korea was recently placed on the US Department of Energy’s Sensitive and Other Designated Countries List, alongside countries such as North Korea, China and Russia.
On top of that, Hegseth left South Korea off of his latest Indo-Pacific trip itinerary, despite Washington’s repeated reaffirmation of its “ironclad” commitment to the alliance with Seoul.
mkjung@heraldcorp.com
