Facing new challenges of the new era, the United States and South Korea have been working to reshape their 51-year-old alliance in 2004. And the changes are expected to continue in the coming years.

After 16 months of negotiations, the two allies finally signed agreements in October over the relocation of the US Yongsan Base which accommodates the United States Forces Korea (USFK) Command, the United Nations Command (UNC) and Combined Forces Command (CFC) from Seoul to Pyeongtaek, a city some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, by 2008.

Only less than 1,000 US military personnel, most of them are administrative ones, will remain in the Asian country's capital. The redeployment will be the most drastic change since the US deployed troops here in 1953.

Prier to that, Washington and Seoul reached consensus to retreat the 2nd Infantry Division of the USFK from the region near inter-Korean border to Pyeongtaek before 2006.

In a separate move, Washington and Seoul agreed in October to reduce one third of the 37,500 USFK troops on the Korean Peninsula by September 2008.

The two sides also revised the Land Partnership Plan (LPP) in late August, which says the United States will return more land, 34 of its total 41 installations, to the host country, by 2011.

The USFK currently occupies some 270 square kilometers of land, equivalent to half of Seoul's area, in the Asian country.

The marathon negotiations on the readjustment of the alliance experienced twists and turns in 2004. But almost every pending issues between the two countries were agreed on before the 36th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM), the highest US-South Korean military meeting participated by defense chiefs of the two countries, in late October in Washington.

The drastic steps in the reshape of the long-standing alliance have received different interpretations. But a US diplomat said "We need to begin to redefine the alliance in terms that are more relevant to today's needs."

New world situation prompts US to realign USFK

The end of the Cold War and the changes of the world situation have pushed the United States to gradually readjust its global strategy, putting its traditional focus to new spots.

Under such circumstances, the US began to readjust its alliance with South Korea. As Scott Snyder, chief of the Asia Foundation's Seoul office, said, "With the end of the Cold War and changes in US global strategy, it is inevitable that the South Korean-US alliance must adapt to new challenges."

After the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the United States finally made certain the present enemies of the world superpower are terrorists. The non-state foes have prompted the US to adjust its military strategies, either at home or abroad. The Global Defense Posture Review (GPR) came out under the new security situation.

According to the GPR strategy, the United States wants its troops in other countries turn to be "more agile, more responsive, more deployable, more survivable, more lethal, and more sustainable," Lieutenant General Charles Campbell, chief of staff of the CFC, once said.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld also said the new goal of US military is to deploy soldiers "to a distant theater in 10 days, defeat an enemy within 30 days and be ready to fight again within another 30."

The Afghanistan War, Iraq War and fights against al-Qaida network made the US firmly hold such theory: it need quick-responsive troops in the world that can launch preemptive attacks to enemies posing threats to it.

Under such a strategic adjustment, US President George W. Bush in August announced a plan that in the coming years, the United States will cut its troops stationed in Asia and Europe by 60,000 to 70,000. South Korea is one of the most affected country by the plan.

With the changes, the US wants South Korea to take more responsibilities of its own defense in future while expressing its unchanged strong commitment to maintain deterrent power as before.... power as before.

South Korea pursuing "cooperative self-defense"

Since South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun took office in early 2003, the reform-minded president has been pursuing a relatively independent policy on South Korea-US relations.

Also, with the rapid growth of its economy, the Asian country has become the 12th largest economic identity in the world, making the self-awareness of South Korean people stronger than before.

However, both the South Korean government and the public are not quite assure of its own defense capability of its 690,000 military forces. Therefore, Roh put forward a "cooperative self-dependent" defense policy which underscores both the traditional South Korea-US alliance and the Asian country's own military buildup.

The president promised last year when he came to power to create a more-equal defense partnership between Washington and Seoul. He further explained in June that "the concepts of self-defense and an alliance can complement each other."

Under such a policy, the South Korean military announced in November that it will spend 99 trillion won (92.5 billion US dollars) by 2008 to pursue a defense capability less dependent on US forces.

Further readjustment of the alliance inevitable

Some analysts said the readjustment of the Seoul-Washington relations in 2004 is critical for whether the blood alliance will maintain for another 50 years.

Local media described the US-South Korean relations as "hate-and-love" one. According to a poll, 61.4 percent of the South Korea people admitted the US forces should remain on the Korean Peninsula. However, 46.3 percent of the respondents think it is the US which is the biggest barrier to reunification of the peninsula.

Currently, the two allies are drifting apart over their outstanding differences toward the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

While the US still harbors deep skepticism about Pyongyang, South Korea is working to move closer to the north. Under the former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung's government, the "Sunshine Policy" has brought the inter-Korean ties warmer with many joint projects and senior level meetings.

The current Roh Moo-hyun administration sticks such rapprochement policy toward DPRK and treating the latter as a country which it can cooperate and reconcile with.

The biggest challenge for both sides is to determine a sustainable basis for pursuit of common interests.

As the USFK's realignment is proceeding, Washington is likely to attach more missions to its troops in South Korea, or change the nature of the USFK.

Lt. Gen. Campbell indicated the possible change by saying "The future of the 21st century will be characterized by a ROK-US alliance that is not confined specifically to the geographical environs of the peninsula, but may, in fact, have a regional quality to it."

If what Campbell said becomes true, it will be an ever profound change of USFK's function. However, the South Koran government shows apathy and cautious of this.

There may be more friction over the realignment of the two old friends, but just as US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and South Korean Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung said in the latest SCM, they hold "strong belief that the alliance remains vital to the interests of the two nations."

Source: Xinhua