 |
| ▲ South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum (R) makes a salute next to his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Charles Q. Brown, ahead of the Military Committee Meeting at the South Korean JCS' headquarters in central Seoul on Nov. 12, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap) |
 |
| ▲ South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum (R) and his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Charles Q. Brown, attend a welcoming ceremony for Brown at the South Korean JCS' headquarters in central Seoul on Nov. 12, 2023. (Pool photo) (Yonhap) |
S Korea-US-military talks
Top generals of S. Korea, U.S. agree to bolster combined defense posture
SEOUL, Nov. 12 (Yonhap) -- The top generals of South Korea and the United States on Sunday reaffirmed their commitment to bolstering the allies' combined defense posture as they met in Seoul for their annual meeting, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
JCS Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum and his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr.,held the annual Military Committee Meeting at the South Korean JCS headquarters in central Seoul, as the allies seek to deepen security cooperation against evolving military threats from North Korea.
"The two leaders shared the importance of developing an ever-stronger mutual defense relationship and affirmed in the strongest words possible their commitment to the combined defense posture under the U.S.-ROK Mutual Defense Treaty," the South's JCS said in an English-language release.
ROK stands for South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea. The two countries signed the bedrock alliance document in October 1953.
The two sides discussed North Korea's continued provocations, including missile launches and its nuclear threat, as well as security issues that destabilize peace and security in the region, it said without elaborating.
Brown also reaffirmed the U.S. extended deterrence commitment to using the full-range of its military capabilities, including nuclear weapons, to defend its ally.
During the talks, the two sides also acknowledged the "meaningful" progress made in the conditions-based wartime operational control transition plan from Washington to Seoul, such as the completion of this year's annual bilateral evaluations on capabilities and systems, it said.
Seoul retook peacetime operational control of its military in 1994, but Washington has kept wartime operational control.
The allies agreed in 2014 the South will assume wartime operational control when "critical" South Korean and alliance military capabilities are secured, and the security environment on the Korean Peninsula and in the region is conducive to a stable transition.
The latest meeting marked Brown's first visit to Seoul since taking office last month.
It was also joined by Adm. John C. Aquilino, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, and Gen. Paul J. LaCamera, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, the United Nations Command, and the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command.
On Monday, the allies' defense chiefs will hold their annual Security Consultative Meeting in Seoul, which is expected to discuss a range of security issues, including ways to strengthen Washington's extended deterrence commitment against North Korea's missile and nuclear threats.
(END)
(C) Yonhap News Agency. All Rights Reserved
