(LEAD) Colby says S. Korea's plan for greater role in defense reflects 'clear-eyed' understanding of security

▲ This photo, provided by the U.S. Forces Korea, shows Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby delivering a lecture organized by Sejong Institute in Seoul on Jan. 26, 2026. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(LEAD) Pentagon official-S Korea

(LEAD) Colby says S. Korea's plan for greater role in defense reflects 'clear-eyed' understanding of security

(ATTN: REWRITES headline, lead with minor edit; ADDS remarks, details)

By Lee Minji

SEOUL, Jan. 26 (Yonhap) -- A senior Pentagon official on Monday assessed President Lee Jae Myung's decision to increase defense spending and do more for its own defense as one based on a "clear-eyed and sage" understanding of the security environment.

Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby also said Seoul's move will help put the decades-long alliance with the United States on a "sound footing" over the long haul, as he is visiting South Korea to discuss the alliance modernization and other security-related issues.

His trip came after the Pentagon released a new National Defense Strategy (NDS) last week that assessed South Korea is capable of taking "primary" responsibility to deter North Korea with "critical, but more limited" U.S. support.

"President Lee's decision to increase defense spending to 3.5 percent ... and to assume greater responsibility for South Korea's conventional defense reflects a clear-eyed and sage understanding of how to address the security environment that we all face and how to put our storied and historic alliance on sound footing for the long haul," Colby said in a forum in Seoul.

He was referring to Lee's vow to achieve self-reliant defense and spend 3.5 percent of its gross domestic product -- a voluntary pledge -- in response to Washington's calls for allies to raise defense spending. U.S. officials, including Colby, have called South Korea a "model" ally.

Colby noted how Trump has put an emphasis on "shared responsibility rather than permanent dependency" for alliances to become strong and touted South Korea as a "great" country that has fully understood and taken action for it.

He cited such a commitment as the reason for choosing South Korea as the destination for his first international trip in his role, reaffirming that the country is a model ally and that Washington is "optimistic" about their adapting alliance.

"Such adaptation, such clear-eyed realism about the situation that we face and the need for greater balance in the sharing of burdens will ensure that deterrence remains credible, sustainable and resilient in this changing world," he said at the forum, organized by the Sejong Institute.

Addressing the wider Indo-Pacific region, the Pentagon official called it a "primary center of gravity of global growth," noting that a favorable "balance of power" is crucial to prevent domination of this region by any state.

While stressing that the U.S. defense policy in the region does not center on confrontation with China, Colby mentioned what he called deterrence by denial along the First Island Chain, seen as a key perimeter for America's preeminence against China in the region.

"We are focused on building a military posture in the western Pacific that ensures that aggression along the First Island Chain is infeasible, that escalation is unattractive and that war is indeed irrational," he said, adding this involves modernizing force posture across Japan, the Philippines and the Korean Peninsula.

Colby arrived in South Korea on Sunday for a three-day visit, including talks with key South Korean security officials, including the national security adviser as well as the foreign and defense ministers.

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