US eyes troop ‘flexibility’, increased defence spending in South Korea

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says US soldiers whitethorn beryllium utilized successful determination conflicts but protecting against North Korea volition stay the priority.

The United States defence caput has visited South Korea to sermon the countries’ subject alliance.

On a travel that included a sojourn to the demilitarised portion with North Korea, Pete Hegseth connected Tuesday praised Seoul’s plans to rise defence spending and confirmed that US troops based successful South Korea could beryllium utilized to look determination threats.

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Hegseth said the 28,500 US soldiers stationed successful South Korea mightiness beryllium utilized successful conflicts beyond the peninsula, including with China, but protecting against nuclear-armed North Korea remains the alliance’s superior goal.

“There’s nary uncertainty that flexibility for determination contingency is thing we would instrumentality a look at,” Hegseth said portion lasting alongside his South Korean counterpart, Ahn Gyu-back.

US officials person signalled plans to marque US forces much flexible successful effect to a broadening scope of issues, specified arsenic defending Taiwan oregon China’s increasing subject reach.

South Korea, which has 450,000 soldiers, has resisted the thought that the relation of US troops could change. But it has besides worked to grow its defence capabilities with the extremity of being capable to instrumentality connected a wartime bid of combined US-South Korean forces.

Boosted budget

Hegseth said the 2 countries were inactive moving connected a associated communique expected to code defence costs, adding that greater subject investments by South Korea person been discussed.

In a parliamentary code connected Tuesday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung announced ample increases successful defence and AI spending.

Lee said adjacent year’s defence fund volition turn by 8.2 percent to 66.3 trillion won ($46bn), its biggest summation successful six years.

The state volition besides triple spending connected artificial quality with an allocation of 10.1 trillion won ($7bn) to facilitate “a large translation aimed astatine propelling South Korea into the ranks of the world’s apical 3 AI powers” alongside the US and China.

Overall, the fund program totals 728 trillion won ($510bn), an 8.1 percent summation from this year.

The brace has besides agreed to person South Korea support and repair US ships, allowing them to enactment successful the country and beryllium acceptable if needed, Hegseth said.

The US authoritative besides suggested President Donald Trump volition enactment South Korean plans to physique nuclear-powered submarines though helium declined to springiness details.

South Korea has said it could motorboat a nuclear-powered submarine by the mid-2030s if provided with substance from the US.