Special forces

Operation Enduring Freedom–Philippines

Lessons in special warfare

Taliban advances as U.S. completes withdrawal

The Taliban has made dramatic gains since President Joe Biden announced the U.S. would leave Afghanistan by Sept. 11, 2021. The time lapse map, which is dated from April 13 to today and was created by FDD’s...

Taliban doubles number of controlled Afghan districts since May 1

The Taliban has taken control of more than 80 districts in the two months since launching its offensive against the Afghan government after President Joe Biden announced the U.S. would withdraw its forces...

The North Korea Threat Is Growing. U.S.-South Korea Military Training Must Press Forward.

Following the successful Joe Biden-Moon Jae-in summit on May 21, 2021, the Moon administration began backsliding on alliance commitments to military readiness. Specifically, President Moon said COVID-19...

Biden-Moon Summit Signals Tougher South Korean Stance Against China

President Joe Biden and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held their first summit on May 21 in Washington. While public attention has focused primarily on Biden’s and Moon’s respective policies toward...

Anticipating the Biden Administration’s New North Korea Policy

The heart of the administration’s new Korea policy will likely focus on implementing the relevant UN Security Council resolutions to achieve North Korea’s verifiable nuclear dismantlement.

The U.S. Military And South Korea Must Train To Deter North Korea

ROK/U.S. combined training – routine but necessary defensive exercises – is described in the media in various ways that causes confusion among the public. With the start of the annual computer simulation...

How to Conduct the Biden Administration’s Korea Policy Review

The way ahead is deterrence, defense, denuclearization, human rights upfront, and solving the “Korea question” (e.g., unification) with the understanding that denuclearization of the north will only happen when we resolve that “Korea question.”

Kim Jong Un Seeks to Bully Biden on the Diplomatic Stage

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un finally broke his silence last week on his regime’s policy toward the incoming Biden administration, labeling the United States as Pyongyang’s “foremost principal enemy.”...

Joe Biden Can’t Fall For North Korea’s Latest Trap

After he labelled America as North Korea’s “foremost principal enemy” and announced plans to strengthen his regime’s nuclear and missile arsenal, Kim Jong-un last week offered Washington an...

Opening of Eighth Party Congress Shows Kim Jong Un Stays True to His Roots

North Korea’s ruling Korean Workers’ Party kicked off its Eighth Party Congress on Wednesday. This periodic meeting seeks to outline the North Korean government’s strategic objectives for a broad...

Enhancing Special Operations for Sustained Counterterrorism Operations

For Joe Biden, Restoring the ROK-U.S. Alliance is Critical for Any Successful North Korea Policy

If President-elect Biden aims to “keep pressing toward a denuclearized North Korea,” as he put it in his Yonhap News Service op-ed, he must first prioritize reinforcing Washington and Seoul’s rock-solid bond based on shared values and combined military strength. This foundation is essential for the alliance to engage and negotiate with Pyongyang from a position of strength, not appeasement.

North Korea’s Parade Confirms Kim Jong Un Holds True to His Revolutionary Political Warfare Strategy

On October 10, North Korea celebrated the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Workers Party of Korea with a well-choreographed military parade. After months of speculation among the Korea watcher community,...

Don’t Trust Kim Jong Un’s Unexpected Apology Over Murder of South Korean Official

Kim Jong Un issued a rare apology to the South Korean government on September 25th after North Korean soldiers killed and then burned the corpse of a South Korean government official, which sparked outrage...

ROK/US combined training protects integrity of the OPCON transition process

The ROK/U.S. Combined Forces Command (ROK/U.S. CFC) completed its first theater-level training in more than a year on Aug. 28. An assessment of initial open-source reporting suggests that the recent training...

It’s time for a third special operations revolution

The Senate Armed Service Committee report on the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) expresses the committee’s persistent concern with U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) and the need for...

Penny wise, pound foolish: The flawed logic of withdrawal from South Korea

The Trump administration announced it is considering withdrawing troops from South Korea because of Seoul’s failure to meet U.S. funding demands in the Special Measures Agreement/burden sharing negotiations....

New South Korean National Security Team Has Close Ties to Pyongyang

South Korean President Moon Jae-in put in place a new national security team last week that is composed of figures known for their close ties to North Korean officials. The composition of the team indicates...

State Department Plays Key Role in New U.S. China Strategy

The White House on May 26 unveiled its new strategic approach to China, which seeks to export its authoritarian political system around the world in order to dominate regions, co-opt or coerce international...