The Effects of Korean Unification on the US Military Presence in Northeast Asia

Abstract

The Korean peninsula remains one of the last bastions of the Cold War. The United States has forward deployed approximately 91,500 personnel to the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan, in part to deter North Korean aggression or to provide the initial military response if deterrence fails. However, ongoing diplomatic negotiations between the ROK and North Korea show the potential for a peaceful reconciliation and eventual reunification of the two nations. While a unified Korea is not a certainty, a political settlement on unification may be reached by 2015. Korean unification would be a catalyst for a major revision of the security architecture in Northeast Asia, involving not only Korea and the United States, but also Japan, China, and Russia. One of the principal US concerns is that the perceived regional stability would lead to a call for the withdrawal of US forces based in Northeast Asia. The groundwork needs to be laid now for maintaining a continued US presence after unification in order to fulfill our national interests.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 01, 2002
Accession Number
ADA408232

Entities

People

  • Carl E. Haselden Jr.

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Biomedical
  • C4I
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Aircrafts
  • Asia
  • Command And Control
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Geographic Regions
  • Marine Corps
  • North Korea
  • Northeast Asia
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Regional Security
  • Security
  • United States
  • United States Pacific Command
  • War
  • Warfare
  • Weapons

Readers

  • International Relations, focusing on Korea-Africa and North Korea-South Korea relations, and Nigeria-Latin American Relations.
  • Strategic Security Studies