Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
SUMMIT Lee pledges higher defense spending, signals future-oriented alliance
President Lee Jae Myung delivers a policy speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., USA, Monday (local time). Yonhap
By Anna J. Park
Korea-US alliance to extend to reach 'global dimension'
WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Lee Jae Myung announced the government’s intention to raise the nation’s defense spending, aiming not only to reinforce the military but also to steer the South Korea-U.S. alliance toward a more future-oriented framework.
Speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a prominent policy think tank in Washington, D.C., Monday (local time), Lee emphasized that South Korea would assume a more proactive role in maintaining security on the Korean Peninsula.
“First, we will increase our defense budget. The additional resources will be used to acquire advanced technologies and assets to build a smart, strong military capable of prevailing in the wars of the 21st century,” the president stressed.
Lee also referred to his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump earlier in the day, noting their shared commitment to modernizing the alliance in response to evolving security challenges.
“President Trump and I agreed (during the summit) to update the [South] Korea-U.S. alliance so that it becomes more reciprocal and forward-looking,” Lee explained. “America’s defense commitment to [South] Korea and our combined deterrence posture will remain ironclad.”
He added that Trump expressed strong support for South Korea’s defense expansion and expressed willingness to deepen bilateral cooperation in advanced defense industries.
President Lee Jae Myung speaks during an interview with Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) CEO John J. Hamre at the CSIS, Washington, D.C., Monday (local time). Reuters-Yonhap
Lee underscored that the alliance would be “upgraded beyond the Korean Peninsula to a global dimension,” while emphasizing that the 28,500 U.S. troops currently stationed in South Korea would remain safe.
His explicit reference to the current U.S. troop presence was widely seen as an attempt to reassure that South Korea’s expanding defense role would not prompt a reduction of American forces on the peninsula.
Lee also pledged to deepen collaboration between South Korea, Japan and the United States, reinforcing the trilateral partnership.
“I recall that President Trump has emphasized Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation since his first term. Together with President Trump, I will strengthen trilateral cooperation based on the solid Korea-U.S. alliance,” Lee said, adding that the three countries will work jointly to not only respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, but also to achieve peace and prosperity on a global scale.
In his closing remarks, Lee highlighted what he called a “future-oriented comprehensive strategic alliance” anchored in the three pillars of security, economy and advanced technology, which he said would “shine even more brightly” for the people of both nations.
“From the trenches and gunfire of the battlefield to the cutting-edge technologies of steelmaking, AI (artificial intelligence), semiconductors, quantum science and nuclear power, the great alliance forged over more than 70 years continues to open new chapters of history even now,” Lee said.
National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac, center, speaks during a press briefing held at the Korean press center set up at a local hotel in Washington D.C., Monday (local time). Wi stands next to presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik, left, and policy chief Kim Yong-beom. Yonhap
Meanwhile, National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac characterized South Korea’s defense spending increase as part of the broader modernization of the bilateral alliance.
“We [South Korea and the U.S.] discussed various ways to strengthen our defense capabilities and the overall direction of the alliance, and reached a consensus [through the summit]. As President Lee mentioned in his CSIS speech, the [South] Korean government is committed to playing a more proactive role in safeguarding security on the Korean Peninsula, including increasing our defense budget,” Wi told reporters late Monday evening (local time).
He added that Lee’s meeting with Trump met the summit’s three main objectives: stabilizing the South Korea-U.S. economic and trade relationship, modernizing the alliance in line with the South’s national interests, and opening new areas of cooperation.