Yonhap says PACOM wants to increase the roles and missions of the UNC, according to Adm. William Fallon:

By Lee Dong-min
WASHINGTON, March 7 (Yonhap) -- The United States is looking for trilateral military cooperation with South Korea and Japan as it seeks to adjust to changing security environments, U.S. military commanders said Tuesday.

The U.S. will also seek to multi-nationalize the United Nations Command (UNC) in South Korea by giving other member nations expanded roles, they said.

For South Korea, Adm. William Fallon, leader of the U.S. Pacific Command, urged the country to look beyond the peninsula in thinking about security as the two nations modernize their alliance.

"We also hope to foster greater trilateral military cooperation between the ROK, Japan and the U.S.," Fallon said at a Senate Armed Forces Committee hearing.

ROK, or Republic of Korea, is South Korea's official name.

The U.S. has 30,000 troops stationed in South Korea, mainly to deter North Korea, which is believed to have weapons of mass destruction.

Although the United Nations Command is a multi-national organization, the United States has historically provided the Command with a majority of its personnel, while other coalition members have primarily functioned in liaison and advisory roles. It is the Command’s intent to create a truly multi-national staff by expanding the roles of the member nations and integrating them more fully into our contingency and operational planning and operations. This integration is even more vital with the recent opening of two inter-Korean transportation corridors crossing the Demilitarized Zone. The United Nations Command has approached coalition members to augment its staff to assist in the management of the two transportation corridors crossing the Demilitarized Zone. The United Kingdom, Australia, France, and New Zealand now provide officers on a rotational basis for these duties. Several other countries, including Columbia, Philippines, and Thailand, are also considering sending augmentees. Additionally, member nations participated in the first contingency planning conference last year and are sending observers to major exercises with the objective of integrating their expertise where it is needed. The United Nations Command hopes to further expand the coalition on a more permanent basis throughout the United Nations Command staff.