CFC commander stresses South Korea's expanding regional security role

Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC), speaks during the 2nd ROK-US Combined Policy Forum in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of CFC

Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC), reiterated the need to expand South Korea's role in regional security as the allies modernize their alliance to address evolving threats.

Brunson, who also heads the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) and the United Nations Command (UNC), made the remarks at the 2nd ROK-US Combined Policy Forum in Seoul, Monday. The forum was organized by the CFC. ROK is an acronym for the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official full name.

"Korea is not simply responding to threats on the peninsula," Brunson said in his keynote speech. "Korea sits at the crossroads of broader regional dynamics that shape the balance of power across Northeast Asia."

He cited the recently published U.S. National Security Strategy, saying the document reflects South Korea's growing importance in preserving stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Brunson also said alliance modernization "should be more than a slogan," adding that the allies should actively adjust how they plan and operate across multiple domains.

"Across the UNC, CFC and USFK, we're approaching scenarios here as complex, multi-domain problems that require faster decision-making and tighter integration," he said.

The alliance modernization concept, first proposed after President Donald Trump took office in January, seeks to reshape the bilateral security alliance to address the broader security landscape in the Indo-Pacific.

Efforts have included discussions over a revised role for USFK and greater defense cost-sharing by Seoul, as Washington explores ways to expand USFK's mission beyond deterring North Korea to include countering China.

Dignitaries including Gen. Kim Sung-min, front row fifth from left, deputy commander of the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, and Gen. Xavier Brunson, front row sixth from left, CFC commander, pose during the 2nd ROK-US Combined Policy Forum in Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of CFC

"Korea’s role is central. Its capabilities, geography and readiness make it a core anchor of any effort to preserve peace in Northeast Asia. That influence is already being felt today as we look forward," Brunson said. "The task for all of us is to continue approaching this alliance and its modernization as a dynamic, evolving process, one that reflects the region we live in, not the region we once imagined.”

The CFC commander has previously emphasized South Korea’s geographic position as a strategic advantage. In an essay published in November, he introduced the so-called "east-up map of the Korean Peninsula," rotating the traditional orientation to highlight South Korea's ability to exert influence across multiple axes of competition, including North Korea, China and Russia.

At the forum, Brunson also highlighted UNC's growing importance, describing the U.S.-led multinational force as a "unique asset" in maintaining the allies’ deterrence posture.

“Far from being a historical remnant, UNC provides a living framework for multinational support … This is a unique asset, and one that strengthens deterrence when it is integrated thoughtfully into all our planning," he said.

Brunson's UNC comments follow a recent clash with South Korean ruling politicians over the control of civilian access to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Since 1953, the UNC has held that authority, but some ruling Democratic Party of Korea members are pushing legislation to give the South Korean government control over nonmilitary activities in the area. In response, the UNC issued a rare statement opposing it.

The general said Seoul and Washington should maintain a credible deterrence posture against Pyongyang's intensifying nuclear threats.

"When we talk about credible deterrence or maintaining stability across the region, the choices made in Seoul echo much farther than many recognize. This matters even more because of the DPRK which we face today,” he said, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Brunson said North Korea's military threats have increased in recent years, noting that the reclusive regime formally rejected peaceful unification, rewrote its constitution to designate South Korea as its primary adversary and dismantled symbols of inter-Korean dialogue.