Seoul: The top military officers of South Korea and the United States were set to meet in Seoul on Thursday to discuss their countries' bilateral alliance amid speculation over a possible change in the role of U.S. troops stationed here.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the meeting between Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Adm. Kim Myung-soo and his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Dan Caine, comes a day ahead of their regular meeting with their Japanese counterpart, Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida. This meeting is scheduled to take place at South Korea's JCS headquarters on Friday. A military official stated that the trilateral gathering is expected to focus on security cooperation among the three countries and address North Korea's military threats.
Caine's visit marks the first visit to South Korea by the highest-ranking U.S. military officer since his predecessor, CQ Brown, visited Seoul in November 2023. This meeting occurs amid the U.S. urging allies to increase their defense spending to 5 percent of their gross domestic product. Additionally, there is ongoing speculation that Washington may alter or reduce the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea to prioritize deterring Chinese threats.
During a Senate confirmation hearing in April, Caine mentioned he would "assess the U.S. military presence in Japan and South Korea, and make recommendations" to the U.S. defense secretary and the president. This assessment is in response to questions about how potential U.S. troop reductions in South Korea and Japan could impact the security situation in the Indo-Pacific region.
Kim is also anticipated to hold bilateral talks with Yoshida on the sidelines of the Trilateral Chiefs of Defense (Tri-Chod) meeting later in the day. The top generals of the three countries last held their Tri-Chod gathering in Tokyo the previous year, attended by Kim, Brown, and Yoshida.