SEOUL (Dispatches) - North Korea has warned that the expansion of the U.S. military command in Japan is sharply raising the risk of war on the Korean Peninsula, accusing Washington and Tokyo of actively preparing for a regional conflict.
According to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Friday, Pyongyang stated that the United States has transformed U.S. Forces Japan (USFJ) into a “de facto war command.” This was achieved by expanding its headquarters and deepening operational integration with Japan’s military.
The commentary cited U.S. Forces Japan Commander Lt. Gen. Stephen Jost, who recently told Japan’s Asahi Shimbun that USFJ headquarters staffing had grown by 215 personnel over the past year specifically to strengthen command capabilities.
North Korea stressed that these changes are converting USFJ from a largely administrative body into an integrated combat command able to direct U.S. and allied forces across the region.
Pyongyang further highlighted closer coordination between USFJ and Japan’s Joint Operations Command, established in March 2025. This restructuring, it said, would allow combined military operations in any regional contingency and position the Japan Self-Defense Force as the primary combat force in a potential Asia-Pacific conflict.
Because USFJ would play a central role in reinforcing American forces during any conflict on the Korean Peninsula, North Korea declared it would become one of its primary military targets.
“A military conflict on the Korean Peninsula is no longer a matter of whether it will occur, but when,” the KCNA commentary stated.
The warning came one day after Japan’s Ministry of Defense announced that the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force had successfully conducted its first live-fire test of a US-made Tomahawk cruise missile from the Aegis destroyer JS Chokai in the Pacific Ocean, with U.S. Navy support.
The Tomahawk, with a range of approximately 1,600 kilometers, is capable of striking targets across North Korea as well as parts of eastern China and Russia’s Far East.
Japan’s Defense Ministry said the test confirmed the missile could be launched under operational conditions and marked progress in Tokyo’s long-range strike program. Japan has accelerated the development of stand-off strike capabilities under its 2022 National Defense Strategy.
In January 2024, Tokyo signed a contract with the United States to acquire 400 Tomahawk missiles; deliveries to the Japan Self-Defense Forces are already underway.
North Korea has repeatedly condemned Japan’s missile modernization, describing previous live-fire exercises and the deployment of Tomahawk missiles as steps toward remilitarization and a renewed direct threat to the Korean Peninsula.
The DPRK continues to strengthen its nuclear and missile deterrent, viewing the United States as an existential threat.
North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un recently ordered the reinforcement of front-line units along the southern border to transform it into an “impregnable fortress.”
In May, he unveiled plans to reorganize the military, strengthen those frontline forces, and maintain a high level of combat readiness against the country’s “principal enemy.”