Elbridge Colby, a possible candidate for national security advisor to Donald Trump, has reportedly called for a shift in the primary mission of U.S. forces in Korea, saying that it is more important to deter China as North Korea is not a primary threat to the U.S. 

Colby, who served as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development during the Trump administration, made the remarks on Monday during an interview with Yonhap News in Washington, D.C. 

The former Pentagon official said that U.S. forces on the Korean Peninsula should not be held hostage to dealing with the North Korean problem because that is not the primary issue for the United States. 

He added that South Korea will have to take “primary, overwhelming” responsibility for its own self-defense against North Korea because the U.S. doesn’t have a military that can fight North Korea and then be ready to fight China.