Defense ministers meeting held… North Korea Missile Information Sharing Tripartite Security Conference held early
Joint Restatement of ‘Extended Deterrence Strengthening’… US Strategic Assets Commitment to Timely and Coordinated Deployment
President 尹 asked for “effective extended deterrence to dispel concerns”… Austin “I will try to win the trust of the Koreans”
More US strategic assets, such as F-22 and F-35 fighter jets and nuclear aircraft carriers, will be sent to the Korean Peninsula, and South Korea-US joint exercises will be expanded and strengthened further to reflect the advanced North Korean nuclear and missile threat and the changing security situation.
In particular, the United States emphasized that its defense commitment to South Korea is not a slogan, but firm and iron.
Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held talks at the Ministry of National Defense on the afternoon of the 31st and the results of the meeting were released through a joint statement and a joint press conference.
The meeting between the two ministers was the fourth in eight months and the first to mark the 70th anniversary of the ROK-US alliance this year.
At the meeting, South Korea and the United States decided to further expand and strengthen the scale and level of joint exercises and exercises this year to reflect changes in the security environment, including the recent development of North Korea’s nuclear and missile capabilities.
It was decided to expand the scale and scope of joint outdoor maneuver exercises and conduct a large-scale joint firepower demonstration.
In this regard, Minister Lee said in a joint press conference, “I and Minister Austin have decided to further expand and strengthen the scale and level of joint exercises and exercises to realize peace through strength on the Korean Peninsula.”
The two sides reaffirmed that they would hold the Extended Deterrence Exercise TTX (DSC TTX) in February to promote discussions among allies regarding deterrence and countermeasures against the North Korean nuclear threat.
The ROK and the United States agreed that the joint air training conducted under the deployment of strategic bombers by the United States late last year was a manifestation of the alliance’s various deterrence capabilities, and pledged to continue close consultation to ensure that the alliance is timely and coordinated. use of strategic assets in the future.
“We have already used fifth generation fighters, namely the F-22 and F-35, and the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group,” said Secretary Austin in a press conference, and emphasized “we will use more of the these in the future.”
“The US defense commitment to Korea is not just a slogan, it is firm and ironclad,” he said. “This is the core of the extended deterrence promise.
“The two governments have already spoken and will continue to work together on a number of ways to strengthen extended deterrence,” he said.
The two Ministers agreed to reaffirm joint measures to strengthen the US extended deterrence operation to ensure a firm defense commitment to the ROK.
As agreed at the ROK-US summit and the 54th ROK-US Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) in May last year, ▲ the alliance’s ability to prevent and respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats ▲ information sharing ▲ planning and action on the co ▲ alliance consultation system, etc. It will continue to be strengthened, he said.
The Secretary and Minister reaffirmed their commitment to making significant progress to complete the review of the US-ROK Tailored Deterrence Strategy (TDS) prior to this year’s SCM.
Although the theory of South Korea’s nuclear disarmament or tactical nuclear relocation, which has recently been discussed at home and abroad, has not been publicly mentioned, it is noted that the content of the meeting announced by the two ministers is a result of reflecting such public opinion. .
In an exclusive contribution to Yonhap News before the summit, Secretary Austin said, “Our enemies and competitors know that if they challenge one of us, they challenge the entire alliance.”
The issue of improving the reliability of extended deterrence was also raised in a meeting with President Yoon Seok-yeol with Secretary Austin after the ROK-US defense ministers meeting.
According to the Office of the President, President Yoon told Secretary Austin, “As the North Korean nuclear threat is increasing day by day, proceed with consultations between the ROK and the United States to find an extended deterrence system ROK-USA effective and strong. that can ease the worries of the Korean people.” he asked
In response, Secretary Austin said, “The United States will make every effort to build a combined defense,” adding that it would strive to gain the trust of South Koreans by further strengthening the ROK-US extended deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile . threats.
The meeting also discussed ways to strengthen regional security cooperation, including security cooperation between South Korea, the United States and Japan.
The two Ministers agreed to jointly develop concrete measures to promote ‘real-time missile warning information sharing’ agreed by the three leaders at the Phnom Penh Summit last November, and to continue further discussions on this in the Korea-U.S. – Japan. Safety Meeting to be held soon
It was decided to hold a ROK-US-Japan security meeting at the same time ‘as soon as possible’ to discuss concrete measures to promote security cooperation among the three countries.
In a press conference, Minister Austin emphasized that “trilateral cooperation between Korea, the United States and Japan strengthens everyone’s security.”
The two Ministers agreed to strengthen the link between the two countries’ humanitarian strategies based on the common understanding of a ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ and to look for ways to collaborate with their South East Asian island friends and the Pacific Ocean.
At the press conference, the two ministers strongly condemned a series of North Korean provocations, including recent missile launches and drone infiltration, as well as violations of UN Security Council resolutions, and reaffirmed that they would respond harshly with the international community to any provocations from the North. Korea in the future.
Marking the 70th anniversary of the signing of the ROK-US alliance and Armistice Agreement this year, Korea and the US decided to deepen cooperation to contribute to regional and global security.
Minister Austin welcomed South Korea’s proposal for a meeting of defense ministers of ROK and UNC member states this year, and related departments agreed to discuss it, Minister Lee said.
/happy news
