S. Korea, U.S. to hold regular defense talks on N.K. deterrence in Seoul next week

▲ This photo, provided by the Korea Defense Daily, shows South Korean and U.S. officials attending the Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue in Seoul in September 2021. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

S Korea-US-defense talks

S. Korea, U.S. to hold regular defense talks on N.K. deterrence in Seoul next week

By Song Sang-ho and Kang Yoon-seung

SEOUL, Aug. 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States will hold regular defense talks on deterrence against evolving North Korean military threats and other alliance-related issues next week in Seoul, the defense ministry in Seoul said Friday.

Deputy Defense Minister for Policy Heo Tae-keun and his U.S. counterpart, Siddharth Mohandas, will lead the Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The allies have been stepping up security cooperation through various deterrence measures amid concerns that Pyongyang could ratchet up tensions by conducting a nuclear test or other provocations.

The KIDD agenda includes the ongoing efforts to reinforce the credibility of America's extended deterrence, the envisioned conditions-based transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) and the two countries' shared commitment to enhancing their partnership into a "global comprehensive strategic alliance," according to the ministry.

Extended deterrence refers to Washington's stated commitment to mobilize a full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear options, to defend its Asian ally.

As part of joint efforts to strengthen the deterrence commitment, the two sides will discuss the envisioned resumption of their high-level Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG), which was suspended in 2018 amid diplomacy with North Korea.

They are also expected to discuss the deployment of U.S. strategic military assets to the Korean Peninsula in line with a summit agreement between Presidents Yoon Suk-yeol and Joe Biden in Seoul in May.

The upcoming training to meet a requirement for the OPCON transition will be another agenda item.

The South and the U.S. are set to conduct the full operational capability (FOC) assessment during their combined Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise set for Aug. 22-Sept. 1. The assessment is the second part of the three-stage program to test the South's capabilities to lead the allies' combined forces.

In addition, the two sides plan to discuss the issue of normalizing a U.S. THAAD anti-missile system in a southern county here, which has been in a state of "temporary" installation pending an environmental impact assessment, according to a ministry official.

The KIDD session usually takes place twice a year. This year, it will be held only once due to various pending global and domestic issues, including the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia.

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