Amid the Indo-Pacific’s rapidly changing security environment, the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the United States are strengthening their defense partnerships and extended deterrence commitment with a full range of capabilities to ensure stability on the Korean Peninsula.
Since the Korean War armistice ended hostilities on the peninsula more than 70 years ago, the ROK-U.S. Alliance has been a linchpin of regional security. As North Korea persists in its nuclear provocations, the Allies’ Combined Forces Command (CFC) leverages bilateral capabilities to deter and, if necessary, defeat aggression. Meanwhile, the United Nations Command (UNC) demonstrates the international community’s long-standing commitment to prevent conflict by upholding the armistice and maintaining support for the Alliance.
As the ROK establishes security partnerships throughout the region, modernizes its military and bolsters combat readiness with bilateral and multilateral training, the Alliance upholds peace and stability throughout Northeast Asia and across the globe.
FORUM spoke with three CFC leaders, (pictured, from left) ROK Army Brig. Gen. Woo Suk Jae, deputy assistant chief of staff for combined/joint plans; exercise division chief Col. Kim Yong Il; and strategy chief Col. Jung Hee Hyoung, about the threats facing the Korean Peninsula and the significance of an enduring ROK-U.S. Alliance.
Their comments have been edited to fit FORUM’s format.
What do you consider the major security threats on the Korean Peninsula and how would you describe the CFC’s most significant efforts to deter those threats?
Brig. Gen. Woo: The Korean Peninsula is facing a range of security threats, yet the most severe threat is the nuclear missile threat posed by North Korea. Despite the international sanctions and economic fall of its people, North Korea continues to develop missile technology and its conventional forces. Such action, clearly, is against international law and is destroying the security and order of not just the Korean Peninsula, but also beyond Northeast Asia to the international community. The CFC, as the heart of the ROK-U.S. Alliance, is maintaining a steadfast, combined readiness posture in preparation for North Korean threats and we see the overwhelming capability of the Alliance as the very foundation of our power to deter North Korean provocation. The biannual ROK-U.S. combined exercises that involve U.S. Forces Korea, governmental agencies and the UNC are the core ways the CFC maintains readiness. [In 2023 and 2024] we conducted the largest-scale exercises where we could observe the strong willpower and capability of ROK-U.S. combined forces.
How significant are recent ROK-U.S. engagements, such as a U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress landing in the ROK and the first port call by a U.S. Navy ballistic missile submarine in decades?
Brig. Gen. Woo: The Republic of Korea is exposed to the North Korean nuclear missile threat, and the U.S. commitment to extended deterrence based on the ROK-U.S. Alliance is fundamental to deterring it. Therefore, regular deployment of strategic assets such as the strategic bomber and nuclear-powered submarine is critical in the sense that it makes the extended deterrence commitment more visible and the public feel safer. Furthermore, the ROK-U.S. Alliance is strengthening its partnership with key nations in the region, such as Japan and Australia, to fortify our deterrence against the North.
What should be recognized is that the Republic of Korea is abiding by the nonproliferation regime, despite facing a direct nuclear weapon threat. And it is thanks to extended deterrence that the ROK can continue to have such a credo. Hence, the active engagement of the U.S. is vital not only to North Korean nuclear deterrence but also the international order.
What does the bilateral Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) that launched in 2023 mean for the Korean Peninsula and the ROK-U.S. Alliance?
Col. Jung: Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Alliance, the ROK and U.S. presidents agreed on the Washington Declaration, where the [NCG] was first launched. The NCG is a meaningful foundation for unified ROK-U.S. extended deterrence. NCG is a bilateral consultation body to strengthen extended deterrence against North Korea through mutual planning efforts of nuclear strategy. Moreover, it is very important as it gives credibility to extended deterrence by institutionalizing both nations’ roles in the [potential] use of nuclear weapons.
During the 24th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue in Washington, D.C., in April 2024, the nations agreed to conduct a tabletop exercise to simulate a North Korean nuclear use scenario, reaffirming the commitment to defending the Republic of Korea through integration of all U.S. conventional, missile and nuclear capabilities and deployment of strategic assets on a regular basis in a visible manner.
This is a step forward for the Alliance itself, the execution capability and, at the same time, proof that the Alliance has shifted toward a new paradigm.
Trilateral cooperation among Japan, the ROK and the U.S. is gaining momentum, launching a multiyear exercise plan and activating a shared, real-time missile warning system after the Washington Declaration. Why is that meaningful for the Korean Peninsula and elsewhere?
Col. Jung:The ROK-U.S.-Japan trilateral summit at Camp David [in 2023] was a very meaningful opportunity where we discussed a new framework for the peace and freedom of the region based on the common values that the three nations share. The three nations, affirming their commitment to consult, agreed on stronger coordination in response to North Korea by upgrading security cooperation upon recognizing a threat posed to a single nation can impact all three nations.
Further, the nations agreed on real-time missile warning data sharing, together with trilateral planning of multiyear combined training. The [nations’] defense chiefs highlighted both trilateral and international cooperation toward the complete denuclearization of North Korea.
This trilateral cooperation will encourage the regional security of Northeast Asia and effectively respond to the challenges we face. This will be meaningful for the peace of the international community beyond the Indo-Pacific.
What role do recent exercises, such as Freedom Shield, and upcoming exercises play in deterrence and other shared objectives?
Col. Kim: The multilateral, combined military exercises and training such as Freedom Shield are now in their heyday. They are getting bigger and more frequent and considering more complex scenarios to help ROK-U.S. combined forces and the UNC stay ready. I believe such exercises and training not only contribute to Korean Peninsula security but also the security of the Indo-Pacific.
Freedom Shield has been the world’s largest combined exercise for the sake of steadfast combined defense posture. This exercise is conducted upon a developed scenario that applies lessons from recent wars and changes to the threat and security environment, focusing on multidomain operations and the neutralization of North Korea’s nuclear threat. Furthermore, during the [2024] exercise, we executed field training exercises in larger scale to develop the interoperability of the Alliance and combined operations capabilities.
Can you talk about the idea that combat readiness is perishable? How important is that principle — and the action it demands — in today’s security landscape?
Col. Kim:To maintain combat readiness posture requires a lot of work. The ROK-U.S. combined forces have therefore made combined exercises and training routine. Such efforts will grant us capabilities to effectively deter and respond to North Korean nuclear provocations and an opportunity to shape a security environment favorable for us in the region. Exercise and training are the fundamental missions of the military and only through those can we keep ourselves strong and ready. While continuing combined exercises and training with the U.S., I believe it is necessary to expand training opportunities with other like-minded countries.
What are the ROK’s strategies to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced technology for dealing with threats?
Col. Jung: The ROK military is in the middle of a modernization process, adopting cutting-edge technologies and strengthening AI technology capabilities as a measure to cope with changes in the social, defense and security environment. The advance of technology such as AI is playing a huge role in defense innovation. The ROK military is focusing on the development of crewed and uncrewed combat systems, operational capabilities in space, cyber, the electromagnetic spectrum, and joint all-domain command and control. All these efforts are to ready the military to actively and comprehensively respond to the changes in warfare and security threats from all dimensions.
In May 2023, the ROK military announced the defense plan for science and technology innovation to secure defense research and development (R&D) capabilities at the national level.
At the ROK Defense AI Center, in cooperation with civil and government sectors, the military can conduct R&D for technologies and support establishment of AI policy and strategy.
How does the CFC maintain stability on the Korean Peninsula?
Col. Kim: Although some of North Korea’s conventional forces are degraded, they remain a threat. Moreover, its nuclear and missile threats are constantly evolving. [In 2023] North Korea raised the level of threat through revisions of its constitution to clearly include its intention to further develop nuclear power.
The CFC contributes to the stability of the Korean Peninsula as the symbol of the ROK-U.S. Alliance. North Korea pointed to the CFC as the biggest challenge to its attempts to impose communism across Korea. This proves the value of the CFC for deterrence.
Also, the CFC is the lead command for development of the ROK-U.S. combined operational plan. We are continuing analysis of new threats and developing the plan based on up-to-date intelligence. And through the biannual combined training that involves all ROK-U.S. capabilities, we are verifying and refining the new operational plan.
Is the North becoming more aggressive and what response does that require?
Col. Kim: North Korean nuclear and missile programs are the imminent threat the Alliance is facing, as evidenced by the North’s offensive nuclear strategy and weapons development. History proves that true peace can only be achieved through solid security. We need to recognize that. And it is necessary to build a dominant capability to deal with the North Korean threat for the sake of sustainable peace on the peninsula. To respond to such threats effectively, the ROK and the U.S. reassure the execution of extended deterrence, tailor deterrence strategy suitable for the Alliance and develop missile response strategy. Both the ROK and the U.S. have pledged to continue coordination efforts to deter North Korean nuclear missile threats by affirming that any kind of North Korean nuclear attack will face an overwhelming and decisive reaction.
