According to Kyodo News reported on October 5, the US military stationed in South Korea is trying to expand its mission from defending North Korea to "deterring China." However, South Korea and China are geographically close and have close economic ties. South Korea is strongly worried that this move by the US military will cause unnecessary misunderstandings and backlash. South Korean President Lee Jae-ming has clearly expressed his dissatisfaction with this.
Reports said that U.S. Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll held a press conference in the suburbs of Seoul on the 1st, saying that the mission of the U.S. military in South Korea is not limited to targeting North Korea, but will also respond to the "threat" from China.
Reported that the US military stationed in South Korea announced on September 29 that it had deployed an expeditionary reconnaissance brigade composed of a multi-purpose MQ-9 "Reaper" drone capable of flying at medium and high altitudes for a long time at Gunsan Air Force Base in western South Korea, and explained that this force will undertake the mission of "surveillance and reconnaissance in the Indo-Pacific region." The US military also announced that it had deployed a new defense system at the Osan Air Force Base in the suburbs of Seoul to deal with drones and cruise missiles. The US military's move is seen as a deployment against North Korea and China.
The report said that on the one hand, the South Korean government attaches importance to the South Korea-US alliance, but on the other hand, it is unwilling to stimulate China. Li Ziming told the media in August that it was "difficult to agree" with the change in the role of the US military in South Korea. In September, he posted another long article on social networking sites, emphasizing that "a strong and autonomous national defense path must be opened up" and advocating that "we should not be involved in external military conflicts."