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Gen. Brunson stresses strategic value of USFK presence in overcoming 'tyranny of distance'

Published: 16 May. 2025, 16:41

This file photo, released by the Korea Defense Daily, shows U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Xavier Brunson during his inauguration ceremony at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, on Dec. 20, 2024. [YONHAP]

United States Forces Korea (USFK) Commander Gen. Xavier Brunson has underscored the strategic value of American troops in South Korea in overcoming geographic constraints for security operations in the broader Indo-Pacific, a critical region home to an assertive China.

Speaking at a forum Thursday, Brunson depicted South Korea as a “fixed aircraft carrier” in the region that presents multiple security challenges, “largely defined by the tyranny of distance,” as he pointed to the role of the 28,500-strong USFK as part of the United States' greater Indo-Pacific strategy.

His remarks came amid lingering speculation that U.S. President Donald Trump's “America First” policy would see a scaling back of overseas U.S. military involvement and that he could float a troop reduction to pressure South Korea to undertake a greater security burden.

“What immediately stood out to me as I looked at the map was the position of the Korean Peninsula, and the fact that it's on the Asian continent, has a sizable U.S. force posture, is inside the first island chain and is the closest allied presence to Beijing,” Brunson said during the Land Forces Pacific Symposium in Hawaii, referring to the island string linking Japan, Taiwan and the northern Philippines.

“At night from a satellite image, the Republic of Korea looks like an island or like a fixed aircraft carrier floating in the water between Japan and mainland China. The Indo-Pacific region represents many challenges ... largely defined by the tyranny of distance, especially when it comes to sustainment,” he added.

In particular, the commander said the USFK is focused not only on “defeating” North Korea but also on operations, activities and investments “as a small part of the greater Indo-Pacific strategy.”

His description of the USFK role in a broader regional context came as expectations have grown that the Trump administration would pursue greater “strategic flexibility” of American troops in Korea to deploy them for a wider range of expeditionary operations outside South Korea.

“Our presence in Korea imposes costs, changes the calculations of leaders of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Russia and China, and provides options for our nation's most senior leaders,” he said, referring to North Korea's official name.

In any conflict, time and distance are “pervasive adversaries,” Brunson said, reiterating the importance of maintaining forward-deployed U.S. troops in the Indo-Pacific region.

“Our presence in the region gives our adversaries pause and ultimately supports the defense of the homeland from freedom's front yard,” he said. “By being forward-stationed, we effectively operate inside an adversary's antiaccess/area denial bubble.”

Antiaccess and area-denial (A2AD) often refers to China's strategy to leverage its advanced military assets to keep U.S. forces at bay. China has been enhancing its A2AD capabilities with cruise and ballistic missiles, bombers and other advanced weapons systems with longer operational ranges and greater lethality and accuracy.

The commander voiced concerns regarding North Korea's evolving threats.

“The DPRK has developed a nuclear arsenal and is expanding their capabilities every day, with the help of Russia and China,” he said.

The general called attention to South Korea's maintenance, repair and overhaul capabilities that can back the U.S. military's regional operations far away from the mainland U.S.

In particular, he noted that South Korean company Hanwha Ocean recently released a U.S. naval ship after maintenance work, saying it looked “better than new.”

“Korea has immense capacity and capability on its shores,” he said.

Commenting on military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, Brunson voiced worries over what Pyongyang is getting from Moscow in return for its support for Russia's war against Ukraine.

“They are advancing some of their programs in ways that we would not expect them to have been able to do,” he said, noting that Pyongyang has been getting military technologies and materiel.

Regarding trilateral cooperation with Japan, Brunson called for the removal of barriers to enhancing three-way collaboration.

“If my family is on the peninsula, I want every partner we can bring to come and train, and we have to remove the barriers,” he said without elaboration.

Yonhap