U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited the Korean Demilitarized Zone with South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back to reaffirm their alliance and discuss adjusting the role of 28,500 U.S. troops. According to a Reuters article, the talks addressed a variety of regional security challenges. The presence of U.S. troops in South Korea has long been a key reinforcement of deterrence against North Korea. Now, with China’s military expansion, Taiwan contingency risks, and the North’s worsening missile and nuclear programs, the U.S. is signalling it might be time for a repositioning of its forces and wants them to be more flexible and able to respond beyond Korea.
Both countries, and Southeast Asia, would be affected by this shift. South Korea will now need to balance its security reliance on the U.S. with defense autonomy. South Korea has historically resisted the shifting of US troops, but at the same time has been building their own defenses for the past 20 years, amounting to 450,00 troops. For the U.S., this change is part of a broader strategy to maintain deterrence in the Indo-Pacific, as what happens in Korea influences what happens in Taiwan, the South China Sea and with China’s expansion. Trump has openly made the statement that as long as he is in office, Beijing would take no action towards its goal of unifying Taiwan with mainland China, which may be a reason why they feel comfortable moving troops around.
Historically and geographically this visit carries significant meaning. The DMZ is not merely a border zone; it’s a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War armistice and a symbol of persistent tension. A visit there carries heavy symbolic weight which is important for the United States to show their dedication to continuing this alliance. Ahn commented positively on the visit and said “I believe it has symbolic and declarative significance itself, demonstrating the strength of the South Korea-U.S. alliance and the combined defence posture,”
This visit also holds implications for Southeast Asia, a region often caught in the middle of the U.S.-China competition. As Washington deepens military coordination with South Korea, Southeast Asian nations like the Philippines, Vietnam, and Indonesia have to pay close attention to these changes. The repositioning of U.S. forces around East Asia could mean greater flexibility in responding to the maritime disputes in the South China Sea, where several Southeast Asian countries have territorial conflicts with China. For them, a more agile and regionally engaged U.S. military would serve as both a stabilizing force and a source of strategic reassurance amid China’s growing assertiveness. However, this also risks heightening regional tensions if China perceives these adjustments in a negative manner, and takes them as a threat. The strengthening of the U.S.–South Korea alliance therefore sends a message beyond the Korean Peninsula by reinforcing a network of security partnerships across Asia aimed at maintaining balance and freedom of navigation, both of which are vital for Southeast Asia’s trade-dependent economies.