Indo-Pacific no more? What a ‘renamed’ US Pacific Command means for American security interests in Asia

It was established on January 1, 1947, by US President Harry S Truman, and for over years, the command operated under the original USPACOM banner. It is the oldest and largest of the US’s six geographic commands and is headquartered in Hawaii.

In its statement Tuesday, USPACOM said that the command had played a critical role in  “establishing the post-WWII (World War II) regional security architecture” besides “its coordination of joint forces during the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and countless humanitarian operations”.

Rechristening in 2018

On May 30, 2018, the command was renamed as the US Indo-Pacific Command. At the time, the then US Secretary of Defense James N Mattis had stressed the importance of the Indian Ocean region under the command’s area of responsibility.

He highlighted the “increasing connectivity between the Indian and Pacific oceans” and said: “Over many decades, this command has repeatedly adapted to changing circumstance and today carries that legacy forward as America focuses west.”

He also pointed to the command’s importance in the US’s National Defense Strategy. “The 2018 National Defense Strategy – the first of its kind in a decade – acknowledges Pacific challenges and signals America’s resolve and lasting commitment to the Indo-Pacific,” he said. Analysts had noted that the renaming reflected India’s rising importance in the US’s geopolitical strategy.

The 2018 name change happened amid rising tensions with China, especially in the Indo-Pacific region. In his announcement, Mattis appeared to refer to China’s increasing geopolitical and economic presence in the region through the latter’s “One Belt, One Road” initiative. According to him, the command was a cornerstone of “a region open to investment and free, fair and reciprocal trade, not bound by any nation’s predatory economics or threat of coercion, for the Indo-Pacific has many belts and many roads”.

What this means for Asia

While USPACOM has maintained that its “vast area of responsibility… remains exactly the same” and that its “unwavering commitment to maintaining a free and open theater alongside regional allies and partners are unchanged”, geopolitical analysts have pointed out that the move could indicate the US could adopt a less combative approach towards China in the near future.

Derek Grossman, professor of political science and international relations at the University of Southern California and a senior fellow at the China-Global South Project, said in a post on X: “Trump 2.0 is actively rethinking ‘Indo-Pacific’ as a geostrategic frame. Indeed, it has already used ‘Asia-Pacific’ several times in official readouts. This strongly suggests a less hawky approach toward China in favor of greater engagement.”

The name change also raises questions about the future of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, also known as the Quad. The Quad is a grouping of four countries — Australia, India, Japan, and the US — that was initiated in 2007 but was revived during Trump’s first presidential term. It was widely considered to be a diplomatic response to China’s increasing economic and geopolitical clout.

This also comes months after the release of the National Security Strategy (NSS) in November 2025, which had suggested a possible realignment in US security interests abroad, particularly the Indo-Pacific region. In a piece for the think-tank Indian Council of World Affairs, senior research fellow Stuti Banerjee wrote that the NSS articulated that the US expected India to “contribute to the region’s security, including through quadrilateral cooperation”. Banerjee, however, pointed out that the document calling the region “Asia” instead (as opposed to Indo-Pacific in the 2017 NSS) indicated “a shift in interest for the current administration”.