USFK Commander Javier Brunson delivers a keynote speech at the 2nd Korea-US Joint Policy Forum in Seoul. [Photo=Yonhap]
Javier Brunson, the commander of US Forces Korea, clarified his recent comment that "Korea is a dagger pointed at China," stating that he intended to explain the operational environment the US faces.
According to Yonhap News on May 30, Brunson made this clarification during the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore when asked whether his "dagger" remark represented the official stance of the Trump administration or had Pentagon approval.
The question arose during a Q&A session following a public speech by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, where a Chinese professor in the audience directed the question to Hegseth, who then passed it to Brunson.
Brunson explained, "What I wanted to convey to the students at the War College was the need to change our perspective and consider our position. It is important for students to understand and respect viewpoints beyond our own."
He used a map with the Korean Peninsula oriented upwards to illustrate his point, saying, "Changing the perspective of the map allows us to consider how other countries in the region view us." He added, "While we must be strong and maintain military capabilities in South Korea, we also need to understand that such perspectives from other countries still exist."
Brunson also recalled a statement from a Prussian military philosopher who referred to Korea as a "dagger aimed at Japan," referencing the words of Prussian Army Major Jakob Meckel, who described the Korean Peninsula as a "dagger aimed at the heart of Japan" in 1885.
He emphasized that his comments were not intended to be hostile toward China, advocating instead for a nuanced view of US-China relations that encourages dialogue.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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