Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is meeting with important allies during his Indo-Pacific trip, with one notable exception: South Korea, at a time of growing concerns of regional threats and uncertainty about U.S. policies. The secretary should strongly affirm U.S. security commitments to its allies, delineate the administration’s Indo-Pacific security policies and priorities, and address questions on the future footprint of U.S. military forces in the region.

Secretary Hegseth’s trip includes stops in Guam, Hawaii, Japan, and the Philippines but skips a stopover in South Korea given the ongoing political turmoil in Seoul. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law on December 3 triggered a constitutional crisis that remains unresolved. The National Assembly impeached Yoon as well as acting President Han Duk-sool, and threatened a motion to impeach the secondary acting president Choi Sang-mok.

South Korea’s Constitutional Court has not yet indicated when it will release its verdict on Yoon’s impeachment. Due to fear of unrest or violent demonstrations after the verdict, South Korea authorities announced plans to mobilize 14,000 police officers and close schools and subway stations near the court. Yoon also faces separate criminal charges of insurrection related to the martial law declaration.

>>> Trump’s Korea Strategy: How Washington Is Navigating South Korea’s Political Turmoil

It is understandable that Hegseth would avoid traveling to South Korea during a time of political crisis, as his predecessor Lloyd Austin did last December. However, doing so will exacerbate local worries of “Korea passing” as Seoul has struggled to establish a relationship with the new U.S. administration. Uncertainties of the future parameters of U.S. policy toward the Indo-Pacific have led to doubts about the continued presence of U.S. forces in Korea and the viability of America’s extended deterrence guarantee.

South Korean sensitivities are particularly acute after the U.S. Department of Energy recently designated it as a “sensitive country,” which could constrain cooperation on advanced technology and nuclear energy. Although the action was initiated by the United States in early January, the South Korean government only became aware of the designation in mid-March. An initial lack of details led to speculation that the U.S. was retaliating to growing advocacy by some South Korean officials and the populace for developing independent nuclear weapons or higher levels of civilian nuclear reprocessing.

Eventually, the U.S. government clarified that the action was not in response to political factors or foreign policy issues but was due to multiple security breaches linked to South Korea, including an individual attempting to board a plane to Seoul in “possession of proprietary nuclear reactor design software.” Another security violation was “classified at a level too sensitive to disclose.”

Secretary Hegseth will arrive in Japan at a time Tokyo is concerned about media reports suggesting the Pentagon is considering cancelling plans for expanding U.S. forces there as a cost-cutting measure. Last year, Washington announced it would transition U.S. Forces Japan, which only had an administrative function, to the Joint Force Headquarters, which will be an operational command. Tokyo is concurrently creating the Japan Joint Operational Command, a combatant command with authority over all military forces to overcome the country’s long-standing deficiencies in conducting joint operations. Both new organizations will be more effective war-fighting commands as well as enable greater bilateral military coordination.

Cancelling these plans would be a major setback to enhancing U.S. military efforts against China’s escalating tactics to intimidate and coerce its neighbors. It would also cut against President Trump’s February 2025 pledge with Prime Minister Ishiba to “further strengthen U.S.-Japan deterrence and response capabilities by enhancing defense and security cooperation, including by upgrading the respective command and control frameworks of U.S. and Japanese forces.”

>>> Japan’s Ishiba Comes to Washington: Summit Success

After decades of U.S. urging, Japan has recently begun major reforms of its military, including doubling of its defense spending, and efforts to augment its security role in the Indo-Pacific. A U.S. reversal of this initiative would send a negative signal to Tokyo for maintaining its own of military development and procurement plans.

During his trip, Secretary Hegseth should continue to emphasize the importance of America’s Indo-Pacific allies to counter the growing North Korean and Chinese threats, affirm U.S. dedication to uphold its defense commitments, and pledge to maintain or augment military forces in the region. He should also pledge a future trip to South Korea after resolution of the political situation there. Furthermore, Washington and Seoul should accelerate ongoing efforts to enhance bilateral defense development and production, particularly on shipbuilding.

Finally, the Pentagon should maintain plans to augment U.S. forces in Japan and the establishment of a joint warfighting command. Instead, the Pentagon should work towards operationalizing the new U.S. and Japanese command structures and identifying complementary roles and missions not only for the defense of Japan but also for a broader regional strategy.

As America grapples with an increasingly powerful China and a belligerent North Korea, it should seek to strengthen its Indo-Pacific alliances while encouraging them to strengthen their own defense capabilities.