WSJ: US Considers Pulling 4,500 Troops from South Korea Amid Strategic Review

By Staff, Agencies

The United States is reportedly considering the withdrawal of around 4,500 troops from South Korea as part of a broader strategic reassessment of its military posture in the Indo-Pacific, according to a Wall Street Journal report citing defense officials.

The US War Department is said to be drafting plans to relocate these forces to other parts of the region, with Guam mentioned as a potential destination. The move is part of an informal review of Washington's approach to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea [DPRK] and has not yet been formally presented to US President Donald Trump.

Currently, approximately 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea to deter threats from the DPRK. The potential drawdown follows ongoing discussions about cost-sharing, with South Korea having agreed to a five-year deal last October that increased its contribution by 8.3%, totaling about $1.09 billion annually to support the US military presence.

On May 19, South Korean presidential candidate Kim Moon-soo expressed willingness to negotiate further increases in Seoul’s financial contributions—responding to past pressure from President Donald Trump for greater burden-sharing.

In a related development, US and South Korean officials recently agreed to redeploy the Patriot Advanced Capability-3 [PAC-3] missile defense system from South Korea to the Middle East for several months. This marks the first confirmed case of US Forces Korea [USFK] transferring military assets out of the peninsula.

Previously, NBC News reported that War Secretary Pete Hegseth had approved the transfer of at least two Patriot batteries and one Terminal High Altitude Area Defense [THAAD] system from Asia to the Middle East, amid rising tensions across both regions.