"Hegseth said the 28,500 US soldiers stationed in South Korea might be used in conflicts beyond the peninsula, including with China, but protecting against nuclear-armed North Korea remains the alliance's primary goal. There's no doubt that flexibility for regional contingency is something we would take a look at, Hegseth said while standing alongside his South Korean counterpart, Ahn Gyu-back. US officials have signalled plans to make US forces more flexible in response to a broadening range of issues, such as defending Taiwan or China's growing military reach, issues,"
"South Korea, which has 450,000 soldiers, has resisted the idea that the role of US troops could change. But it has also worked to expand its defence capabilities with the goal of being able to take on a wartime command of combined US-South Korean forces. Hegseth said the two countries were still working on a joint communique expected to address defence costs, adding that greater military investments by South Korea have been discussed."
"In a parliamentary address on Tuesday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung announced large increases in defence and AI spending. Lee said next year's defence budget will grow by 8.2 percent to 66.3 trillion won ($46bn), its biggest increase in six years. The country will also triple spending on artificial intelligence with an allocation of 10.1 trillion won ($7bn) to facilitate a major transformation aimed at propelling South Korea into the ranks of the world's top three AI"
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited South Korea, praised Seoul's plans to raise defence spending, and toured the demilitarised zone. He said the 28,500 US soldiers stationed in South Korea might be used in conflicts beyond the peninsula, including with China, while protecting against nuclear-armed North Korea remains the alliance's primary goal. US officials signalled plans to make US forces more flexible to respond to issues such as defending Taiwan and China's growing military reach. South Korea has resisted changing the role of US troops but is expanding defence capabilities to assume wartime command of combined forces. Seoul announced large increases in defence and artificial intelligence spending, including specific budget growth and allocations.
#us-south-korea-alliance #regional-military-flexibility #north-korea-deterrence #defense-and-ai-spending
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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