A Comparative Analysis of the Strategic Flexibility of U.S. Forces Korea and U.S. Forces Japan
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As uncertainty in the global security environment has intensified since the 2000s, the United States has pursued a comprehensive defense transformation grounded in strategic flexibility, shifting its global military posture from a threat-based, forward-stationed force to a capability-based, highly mobile force. In line with the U.S. Global Defense Posture Review and its Indo-Pacific priority strategy, U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ) have emerged as the core regional nodes to which this flexibility is applied. At present, USFK is evolving into a regionally deployable mobile force through the streamlining of its ground forces and the modernization of its air power, while USFJ is transforming into a globally deployable strategic force supported by Japan’s proactive host-nation support system. Under the banner of “alliance modernization” of the second Trump Administration, there is a growing U.S. tendency to integrate USFK and USFJ into a single, organically connected operational network. As the strategic flexibility of USFK is put into operation, South Korea increasingly faces the dual dilemma of entrapment and abandonment. In response, South Korea must explore proactive policy directions, including the institutionalization of prior consultation on USFK force employment, the enhancement of qualitative deterrence capabilities, the development of military response options for global contingencies, and the promotion of integrated conventional and nuclear deterrence within the ROK–U.S. alliance.
Abstract
As uncertainty in the global security environment has intensified since the 2000s, the United States has pursued a comprehensive defense transformation grounded in strategic flexibility, shifting its global military posture from a threat-based, forward-stationed force to a capability-based, highly mobile force. In line with the U.S. Global Defense Posture Review and its Indo-Pacific priority strategy, U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ) have emerged as the core regional nodes to which this flexibility is applied. At present, USFK is evolving into a regionally deployable mobile force through the streamlining of its ground forces and the modernization of its air power, while USFJ is transforming into a globally deployable strategic force supported by Japan’s proactive host-nation support system. Under the banner of “alliance modernization” of the second Trump Administration, there is a growing U.S. tendency to integrate USFK and USFJ into a single, organically connected operational network. As the strategic flexibility of USFK is put into operation, South Korea increasingly faces the dual dilemma of entrapment and abandonment. In response, South Korea must explore proactive policy directions, including the institutionalization of prior consultation on USFK force employment, the enhancement of qualitative deterrence capabilities, the development of military response options for global contingencies, and the promotion of integrated conventional and nuclear deterrence within the ROK–U.S. alliance.