Anchor: A new U.S. defense strategy assessed that South Korea is capable of taking “primary responsibility” for deterring North Korea with “critical but more limited” U.S. support, reflecting a shift in Washington’s approach to alliance burden-sharing on the Korean Peninsula. Yun Sohyang has more. 

Report: The U.S. Department of War released the 2026 National Defense Strategy (NDS) Friday, stating that the department will prioritize strengthening incentives for allies and partners to take primary responsibility for their own defense, including on the Korean Peninsula, while receiving limited but essential support from U.S. forces.

The document placed emphasis on South Korea’s ability to lead conventional deterrence efforts, citing Seoul’s high level of defense spending, robust defense industry, and conscription-based military, stating that South Korea is capable of assuming the main role in deterring North Korea with limited but vital U.S. backing. 

Washington also said South Korea has the will to take primary responsibility as it faces a direct and clear threat from North Korea, and that the shift in the balance of responsibility is consistent with America’s interest in updating U.S. force posture on the Korean Peninsula.

The strategy criticizes decades of underinvestment by U.S. allies, saying many were “content to allow the United States to defend them” while prioritizing domestic welfare spending, while also acknowledging that past U.S. policymakers encouraged dependency rather than partnership. Citing President Donald Trump’s leadership, the document says allies have begun to “step up” since January 2025, pointing specifically to Europe and South Korea.

The strategy also identifies North Korea as a “direct military threat” to South Korea and Japan, and warns that Pyongyang’s nuclear forces are growing in both size and sophistication.

It stated that North Korea now poses a “clear and present” risk of nuclear attack not only to U.S. allies but to the U.S. homeland itself, underscoring the immediacy of the threat to the U.S. mainland as justification for prioritizing homeland missile defense. 

Notably, the new NDS does not explicitly mention the goal of North Korean denuclearization. 

This comes after the Trump administration's National Security Strategy released in December, a document that outlines U.S. security priorities and strategic direction, made no mention of North Korea, an omission that raised concern that the issue may be slipping down Washington’s priorities.

The 2026 National Defense Strategy document lists, in the order of China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea as key threats to U.S. Security. 

Yun Sohyang, KBS WORLD Radio news.