Tag: USFK

There is still plenty of procedural hurdles this bill has to go through before being passed, but the Senate is trying to prevent the Trump administration from making any proposed cuts to USFK’s current troop levels:

 A Senate defense policy bill for fiscal year 2026 includes a ban on the use of funds to reduce the number of U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) troops below the current 28,500, its text showed Thursday amid concerns that U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration could seek a USFK troop cut.

Posted on Congress’s website, the Senate bill — the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) — contains the ban for the first time in five years. It also reaffirms the “sense of Congress” on reinforcing the South Korea-U.S. alliance by maintaining the current USFK troop level.

The bill comes amid speculation that the Trump administration could consider a USFK reduction and call on South Korea to increase its defense spending for its own defense, as Washington prioritizes deterring the “pacing threat” from an increasingly assertive China.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This seems to be a trial balloon warning of what could happen to USFK if the ROK is not cooperative in allowing U.S. military units in Korea to be used to respond to regional crisises. The recent deployment of Patriot missile defense units off the peninsula shows that the ROK was cooperative with that deployment:

A U.S. think tank recommended a reduction of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) troop level to about 10,000 from the current 28,500 in a report released Wednesday, amid speculation that the Pentagon might weigh the idea of a troop drawdown on the Korean Peninsula to prioritize deterring Chinese threats.

Defense Priorities, a Washington-based institution, released the report, titled “Aligning global military posture with U.S. interests,” saying that the U.S. troop presence should be reduced even further if Seoul limits the U.S. ability to use USFK assets to address other regional security crises outside the peninsula.

The report was written by Jennifer Kavanagh, senior fellow and director of military analysis at the think tank, and Dan Caldwell, a former senior adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The think tank recommended cutting all ground combat units not tied to base security from South Korea, along with Army signal, intelligence, and headquarters units, and some of their associated support and sustainment units — a reduction that would remove most of the 2nd Infantry Division from Korea, including the rotational brigade combat team and Army combat aviation units.

It also said that the U.S. should cut airpower based in Korea, moving two fighter squadrons from U.S. bases in South Korea back to the U.S. and that about a third of air maintenance and other support units and personnel can also be returned stateside.

“In total, this would reduce the total U.S. military presence in South Korea by more than 50 percent, leaving about 10,000 personnel along with two fighter squadrons (including a larger super squadron) and support forces.

“The ground personnel left would be primarily for support, sustainment, logistics, and maintenance, leaving the responsibility for combat operations in the event of any crisis on the peninsula to South Korean forces.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This is something I can support President Lee on, redeveloping the land former USFK bases were once on instead of just leaving it abandoned:

An artist’s rendition of the Gyeonggi Unification Plus Center, which is slated to open sometime this year in Uijeongbu city, South Korea. (Gyeonggi-do Provincial Government)

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung called on the military this week to streamline the process of repurposing government real estate previously occupied by U.S. forces since the Korean War. The directive is aimed at reusing now-abandoned property in northern Gyeonggi-do, South Korea’s most populous province, that the United States returned to the South Korean government after consolidating its forces elsewhere, presidential office spokeswoman Kang Yu-jung said Tuesday at a news conference in Seoul.

During his presidential campaign, Lee claimed that the returned lands in Gyeonggi-do were unused and neglected due to bureaucratic restrictions. Lee, elected president this year, served as governor of Gyeonggi-do until 2021. He said during the campaign that businesses had no interest in developing the land after local governments marked up real estate prices. “It can be deregulated, but it is not being deregulated,” he said during a speech in Paju on May 20. “As a governor of Gyeonggi-do, I had limited authority. But when I have presidential authority, I will change the regulations to reasonably solve problems and avoid unfair situations.”

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but there has been plenty of successful examples of vacated bases being redeveloped such as the former Camp Castle in Dongducheon and Camp Sears in Uijeongbu.

Here is the latest on enhnancing strategic flexibility of U.S. military forces in Korea and Japan:

In a contribution made to a Japanese daily newspaper, The Asahi Shimbun, Jost said, while stressing more cooperation with the Japanese Defense Forces, that the USFJ’s primary task would shift from “alliance management missions” to “operations that span the spectrum of operations from humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and armed conflict” over time. He referred to an expanded role for the USFJ in countering China’s threat in the Indo-Pacific region, writing, “The security, freedom and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific face increasing challenges from adversarial nations, primarily the People’s Republic of China … These threats are only intensifying.”

In tandem, local media has reported that the USFK was using a training map of the Asian region drawn upside down to illustrate the proximity of Korea to Taiwan and the Philippines, suggesting U.S. forces possibly being deployed, should a conflict arise centered on Taiwan or in the South China Sea. Gen. Brunson is expected to meet the Korean press this month to speak about the “strategic flexibility” of U.S. forces in Korea.

The combination of these comments signals that the Trump administration’s claims of strategic flexibility may materialize in not only deployment of U.S. forces in South Korea to other areas, but also a changed status for USFK command. Many eyes are watching the forthcoming U.S. National Defense Strategy, which will detail the U.S. administration’s defense posture globally as competition with China deepens. Additionally, there are reports that have some officials within the Trump administration proposing to elevate the commander of the USFJ to a four-star general level while demoting the status of the current USFK commander to a three-star general’s post.

To be sure, the USFJ has about 55,000 soldiers stationed in Japan and is considered a strategic command for Indo-China as well as bilaterally, while the USFK has 28,500 forces in South Korea. However, joint operations with the Japan Self-Defense Forces will not reach the capabilities of the USFK and the South Korean military anytime soon.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but reducing the USFK commander to a three-star would be a loss of prestige and influence for the ROK government with the United States. On the other hand, the USFJ commander becoming a four-star would be a positive for Japan. I can understand why the ROK government will want to lobby hard to keep the four-star position on the pen. However, why can’t they both just be three stars that work for the INDOPACOM four star commander?

In regards to strategic flexibility of U.S. troops in USFK this has already happened as the recent deployment of U.S. Patriot batteries from both Korea and Japan demonstrate.

Here is what the new MARFORK commander had to say recently:

The top U.S. Marine commander in South Korea has underscored her troops’ commitment to the “time-tested” alliance between the two nations and readiness to support regional stability, as the allies face new security challenges 75 years after the 1950-53 Korean War.

Maj. Gen. Valerie Jackson, head of the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Korea (MARFORK), highlighted the allies’ ties tracing back to the three-year conflict, which broke out with North Korea’s invasion of South Korea on June 25, 1950, in a written interview with Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday. (……)

Jackson, who took office earlier this month, oversees a force of about 100 personnel and facilitates regular training for U.S. Marines who are deployed from outside the country, including Japan.

South Korean and U.S. Marines stage large-scale amphibious landing exercises, among other drills, throughout the year to maintain readiness against North Korean threats.

“U.S. Marine Corps Forces Korea remains dedicated to our mission and ready to support the broader Indo-Pacific strategy,” she said. “Our combined, joint, all-domain training footprint ensures readiness on the Korean Peninsula and provides flexibility to respond to regional operations.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This has long been reported, but the ROK military has confirmed the deployment of U.S. Patriot missile batteries off the peninsula for the first time:

About 200 U.S. troops based in South Korea have been temporarily redeployed to the Middle East, according to a South Korean military official cited in a local news report. The soldiers were part of a Patriot missile-defense unit stationed in South Korea and deployed to an undisclosed location the Middle East last month, the Ministry of National Defense official told South Korean broadcast KBS for a report Friday. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, a common practice for government sources in the South. The South Korean defense ministry referred questions to U.S. Forces Korea, which oversees approximately 28,500 American troops on the peninsula. In an email Monday, USFK spokesman David Kim said the command “maintains a ready, capable and lethal force” but declined to provide further details, citing operational security. Patriot batteries are deployed across U.S. military bases in South Korea to protect against potential threats from the North.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but this is what strategic flexibility that U.S. military leaders have been advocating for USFK looks like.

I think any decision to reduce USFK troop numbers will be highly dependent on the ROK government supporting U.S. troops being used for off peninsula contingencies:

Deputy Defense Minister for Policy Cho Chang-rae (R) and U.S. Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) (C) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) pose for a photo during their talks on May 31, 2025, on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual defense forum in Singapore, in this photo provided by South Korea’s defense ministry.

A senior South Korean defense official has underscored the importance of maintaining the current troop level of the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) during meetings with U.S. lawmakers Saturday, the South’s defense ministry said.

The move came amid speculation that the United States may partially pull out the USFK to seek “strategic flexibility” to better deal with an assertive China.

Deputy Defense Minister for Policy Cho Chang-rae made the point as he met with U.S. congressional delegations representing the Senate and the House of Representatives, respectively, on the margins of the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual defense forum in Singapore. Cho attended the gathering instead of acting Defense Minister Kim Seon-ho.

In the talks, Cho emphasized the South Korean military and the USFK should continue to work together to maintain regional peace and stability by enhancing deterrence against North Korea on the Korean Peninsula on the back of a firm combined defense posture, the ministry said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This confirms that the Pentagon is looking at how to adjust force posture in the Indo-Pacific and it could mean there could be change coming to USFK or not. We will eventually see what options for force posture changes the Pentagon decides upon:

A senior U.S. defense official underscored the need Thursday to “modernize” the alliance with South Korea and “calibrate” U.S. force posture on the Korean Peninsula to deter China, apparently leaving open the possibility of an adjustment to the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) presence.

In a press briefing, the official pointed out Washington’s desire to work with the incoming Seoul government to ensure that the bilateral partnership is “strategically sustainable,” as South Korea is set to pick a new president in an election set for Tuesday.

The official’s remarks followed a recent news report that the Pentagon is considering withdrawing roughly 4,500 troops of the 28,500-strong USFK and moving them to other locations in the Indo-Pacific, including Guam. The Pentagon has dismissed the report as untrue.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.