U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea on Monday, November 3, 2025. The visit, his first to the peninsula since taking office, comes ahead of high-level security talks in Seoul focused on reshaping the role of the 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in the country.
Hegseth, alongside his South Korean counterpart Ahn Gyu-back, toured the Panmunjom border village and Observation Post Ouellette. The joint visit, the first by the two countries’ defense chiefs in eight years, was described by South Korea’s defense ministry as a reaffirmation of the “firm combined defense posture” against North Korea.
The tour precedes the annual Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) in Seoul, where the primary agenda item is Washington’s proposal to make the U.S. military presence more flexible.
According to U.S. officials, the Trump administration is pushing a plan to allow American forces to operate “outside the Korean peninsula” in response to a broader range of regional threats. This strategic shift is aimed at countering China’s growing military reach and providing a deterrent for the defense of Taiwan.
The high-level talks will also cover combined defense readiness against North Korea’s nuclear program and South Korea’s plans to increase its defense budget, a key demand from President Trump for allies hosting U.S. forces.
