U.S. Military Presence in a Post-Unified Korea: Is It Required.

摘要

In a future geo-political environment where North and South Korea are unified under a single government with single economic and military systems how will this shift in the strategic environment impact U.S. diplomacy the U.S. National Security Strategy and the balance of power in the region. Will U.S. vital interests in the region remain unchanged and if not how will they change. In the past U.S. National Security Strategy (NSS) prominently stated that a 'strong and stable Asia Pacific community was one of six top strategic priorities.' The current NSS states, North Korea has become the world's principal purveyor of ballistic missiles, and has tested increasingly capable missiles while developing its own WMD arsenal. During his 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush labeled North Korea as part of the 'axis of evil'. Undoubtedly, the Korean peninsula is one of the likely major regional conflicts or theaters of war. Major military reviews of U.S. military requirements and force structure this decade have factored in North Korea as a major conventional and unconventional threat to U.S. vital interests in the region. A change to this major regional threat will alter the strategic environment of Asia Pacific region and have significant implications for the U.S. Armed Forces.