United States Army Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of United Nations Command, Combined Forces Command, and United States Forces Korea (USFK), warned of the Chinese Communist Party’s growing maritime assertiveness and outlined plans to modernize the U.S.-Republic of Korea Alliance at a news conference at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, about 60 kilometers south of Seoul.
The August 2025 briefing at the U.S. Army garrison was his first with Korean and international media since assuming command in July. Brunson addressed concerns ranging from People’s Liberation Army Navy activity in the Yellow Sea to the evolving security landscape of Northeast Asia.
Responding to questions about a possible U.S. troop drawdown in South Korea, he emphasized that defense hinges on capabilities rather than head counts. He said planners are focused on ensuring USFK’s ability “to see, to sense, to understand — and even target — some of those assets is without peer,” according to a transcript of the briefing. He left open the option to adjust troop levels as strategic needs evolve.
The general described a push for “alliance modernization” to reflect changes in both U.S. and South Korean societies since the Korean War as well as the changing international environment. He noted that modernizing the alliance would enhance the strategic flexibility of U.S. forces in Korea and allow for broader contributions to regional security beyond the peninsula. “The Republic of Korea is in a different place than it was 75 years ago,” Brunson said, according to the transcript. “The United States is certainly in a different place than we were 75 years ago. … [C]ontextually, the region — Northeast Asia — is markedly different.”
Brunson warned that security challenges now extend beyond North Korea. He noted deepening ties among China, North Korea and Russia, highlighting Pyongyang’s exchange of weapons and technology with Moscow. He called recent combined China-Russia naval movements dangerous, describing an exercise in which a Russian fleet linked up with Chinese vessels south of South Korea’s Jeju Island on their way to Vladivostok, Russia.
In response to a question about China’s claims to have flown stealth fighters in or through the Korean Strait, and that its aircraft carrier Fujian had also been deployed around the West Sea, Brunson said the actions “look eerily reminiscent of things that we saw in the South China Sea.” His response alluded to the idea that such actions could signal an attempt to treat portions of the Yellow Sea as internal waters, which would risk infringing on South Korean sovereignty. “And that’s what we all have to be witting to — the fact that Korean sovereignty can be impugned by actions taken by other nations, and that we can’t allow,” Brunson said.