Home > National > Diplomacy

South Korea can take 'primary responsibility' for deterring North, says Pentagon white paper

Published: 24 Jan. 2026, 14:45

CHO YONG-JUN
[email protected]

U.S. President Donald Trump, left, speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on July 8 as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth looks on. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

South Korea can take "primary responsibility" for deterring North Korea with a more limited U.S. support, according to the 2026 National Defense Strategy published by the United States Department of Defense on Friday.

"With its powerful military, supported by high defense spending, a robust defense industry, and mandatory conscription, South Korea is capable of taking primary responsibility for deterring North Korea with critical but more limited U.S. support," the 2026 National Defense Strategy said.

North Korea can strike targets in Korea and Japan with nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, the document added. Its nuclear forces pose an increasing threat to the United States mainland. The strategy omitted any mention of the denuclearization of North Korea.

The National Defense Strategy is a subordinate document to the National Security Strategy released last month. It sets defense priorities and a framework to deter major threats. The strategy explicitly placed the primary responsibility for defending the Korean Peninsula on Seoul.

Cover for the 2026 National Defense Strategy [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The document did not specify the details of "critical but more limited U.S. support." However, the language suggests South Korea must invest more to prevent provocations while the United States provides nuclear deterrence.

"Korea has the will to do so, given that it faces a direct and clear threat from North Korea," the strategy said. "This shift in balance of responsibility is consistent with America's interest in updating U.S. force posture on the Korean Peninsula."

"In this way, we can ensure a stronger and more mutually beneficial alliance relationship that is better aligned with America's defense priorities, thereby setting conditions for lasting peace."

The report, saying that North Korea "poses a direct military threat" to South Korea and Japan and that Korea should "stay vigilant against the threat of a North Korean invasion," despite calling its large conventional forces "aged or poorly maintained."

The strategy report also specified that its missile forces are also "capable of striking targets in the ROK and Japan with conventional weapons as well as other weapons of mass destruction." The ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official name.

No mention of North's denuclearization

North Korea's nuclear forces are "increasingly capable of threatening the U.S. Homeland," the report said, adding that the forces growing in size and sophistication "present a clear and present danger of nuclear attack" to the United States, implying that North Korea's nuclear technology has the potential to improve and directly attack the U.S. mainland.

The new strategy, however, did not mention denuclearization. The 2022 Nuclear Posture Review under President Biden sought the "complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

Elbridge Colby, the deputy secretary of defense for policy, will visit Seoul and Tokyo next week. He is a close ally of U.S President Donald Trump and a key security architect.

America first and Western Hemisphere first

The strategy prioritized homeland defense and the Western Hemisphere. It accused European nations of "free-riding" on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and labeled the war in Ukraine "Europe's responsibility," according to the strategy.

"Although Europe remains important, it has a smaller and decreasing share of global economic power," the document said. "We must — and will — prioritize defending the U.S. Homeland and deterring China.

The report, which said that "not all threats are of equal severity, gravity and consequences," said it will prioritize "strengthening incentives" for allies in Europe, the Middle East, and on the Korean Peninsula to defend themselves.

The report said that the country will "guarantee" U.S. military and commercial access to the Panama Canal, Gulf of Mexico and Greenland.

The Pentagon said it aims to maintain a "favorable balance of military power" against China but specifically pointed out that it wasn't for "dominating, humiliating or strangling" China. The report said President Trump showed he is willing to engage directly with President Xi Jinping to seek "stable peace, fair trade and respectful relations with China."

NATO members are "substantially more powerful than Russia, the strategy said. Defending against Russia is a "European responsibility" that requires the leadership and commitment of NATO allies.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM HYOUNG-GU [[email protected]]