US pressures South Korea to redefine alliance, pivot away from North Korea
A top US commander’s comments on ‘strategic flexibility’ show Washington wants Seoul to help counter China and Russia, analysts say
US Forces Korea (USFK) Commander General Xavier Brunson, in his first press conference with local reporters since taking command in December, said modernising the bilateral military alliance was essential to keep it “ready, relevant and able” to respond to evolving regional threats, such as from China and Russia.
“What’s being asked of Korea is to be stronger against the DPRK, that we might have the flexibility as we modernise our alliance so that we could go do other things,” Brunson told journalists on Friday last week, referring to North Korea by the abbreviated form of its official name.
“That is strategic flexibility – the ability to be able to place your forces in space and time and need. That is what we seek to always be able to do,” he said.
