Pentagon eyes withdrawing 4,500 troops from S. Korea

The administration of US President Donald Trump is reviewing a plan to withdraw thousands of US troops from South Korea and reposition them within the Indo-Pacific region, Report informs referring to The Wall Street Journal.

While the idea is said to be one of several under discussion among senior US officials, it has drawn attention as it coincides with the growing debate in the United States on expanding the strategic flexibility of US Forces Korea (USFK).

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) noted on May 22 that an option “being developed by the Pentagon is to pull out roughly 4,500 troops and move them to other locations in the Indo-Pacific region, including to Guam,” citing defense officials. The ideas are being prepared as “part of an informal policy review on dealing with North Korea.”

However, the proposal seemingly has not yet been presented directly to Trump and remains one of several concepts under discussion by high-ranking officials reviewing policy.

A Pentagon spokesman said there were “no policy announcements to make” when asked about the discussion of a troop drawdown, according to WSJ. National Security Council spokesman Pete Nguyen didn’t speak directly about the withdrawal of troops but said “complete denuclearization” of North Korea was still a commitment for Trump.