By Focus | 2026-01-20

With regional security in the Indo-Pacific at stake, US forces are planning to expand their scope of operations, putting South Korea at the center of that strategy, according to military officials.

Gen. Xavier T. Brunson, commander of the Korea-US Combined Forces Command (CFC), US Forces Korea (USFK) and United Nations Command (UNC), has repeatedly emphasized Seoul's strategic importance.

South Korea hosts "the only United States forces assigned to the Asian continent inside the first island chain," Brunson noted during remarks at the Honolulu Defense Forum January 12-13.

The first island chain includes Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines.

About 28,500 US troops are stationed in South Korea, according to the Pentagon.

Brunson highlighted "the potential that exists from that position, by virtue of the strength of the ally who we serve alongside every day."

Deterrence "starts at the tactical level," he said, adding that South Korea's roughly 500,000 active-duty troops partnering alongside US forces on the peninsula provide "incredible" potential.

Responding to a question about past tendencies to view military commands based in South Korea as disengaged from other regional security issues, Brunson indicated that mentality was changing.

"I think that there's a recognition now of the centrality of Korea and of the peninsula," he said.

Shift in strategy

These comments reflect a shift in USFK strategy, analysts say, pointing to similar assertions Brunson made in recent months.

In a lecture December 10 at the National Defense University in Washington, DC, Brunson described the Korean peninsula as the "hinge between the Asian continent and the Pacific."

He encouraged students to put "Korea at the center of their mental picture of the Indo-Pacific and to think in terms of capabilities, networks and overlapping dilemmas for adversaries."

South Korean media noted Washington has long described the US-South Korea alliance as a "linchpin" but said Brunson's use of "central pillar" signals a broader framing for USFK in an expanded Indo-Pacific approach, the Chosun Daily reported December 15.

Brunson made similar assertions during the 2nd ROK-US Combined Policy Forum in Seoul on December 29. ROK is an acronym for the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official name.

"Korea is not simply responding to threats on the peninsula," Brunson said in his keynote speech. "Korea sits at the crossroads of broader regional dynamics that shape the balance of power across Northeast Asia."

He cited the latest version of the US National Security Strategy, published in November, which highlights "a robust and ongoing focus on deterrence to prevent war in the Indo-Pacific."

The document reflects South Korea's growing importance in preserving stability in the Indo-Pacific region, Brunson said, according to the Korea Times.

"Korea's role is central," he said. "Its capabilities, geography and readiness make it a core anchor of any effort to preserve peace in Northeast Asia."

Shift in perspective

Brunson advanced that argument in a November 16 article introducing an "East-Up Map," writing that flipping the standard orientation "illuminates Korea's role as a natural strategic pivot."

In November remarks carried by the Chosun Daily, Brunson described South Korea as sitting on intersecting competitive axes -- North Korea to the north, China to the west and Russia to the northeast -- and said that a multidirectional posture would strengthen deterrence.

"Maintaining a posture that can impose costs on adversaries from any direction will strengthen the Korean Peninsula's first line of defense," he said.

Brunson defined this posture as "strategic flexibility," intended to reinforce peninsula deterrence while addressing broader contingencies near the first island chain. This approach "does not shift focus away from the Korean Peninsula but recognizes that the deterrence we maintain here extends outward to preserve peace across the Indo-Pacific," he said.

Military exercises

The US military regularly holds bilateral and multilateral training exercises with its allies in the Indo-Pacific, including with South Korea, Japan and the Philippines.

South Korea and the United States hold two large-scale military exercises annually -- Freedom Shield in the spring and Ulchi Freedom Shield in the summer.

"Exercises are the lifeline of the military," South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said in an interview that Yonhap News TV aired on January 6.

"At this time, we plan to conduct the combined exercise as scheduled," he said.

Jamie Choi, a spokeswoman for USFK, CFC and UNC, confirmed the participation of US forces in the upcoming defense-focused Freedom Shield exercises, Stars and Stripes reported January 8.

The training is designed to strengthen the US-South Korean alliance, enhance their combined defense posture and improve joint readiness, Choi said by email.