South Korea, the U.S., and Japan have agreed to regularize joint drills to deter and respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats. South Korea, the U.S. and Japan also reexamined plans to share North Korean missile warning information in real time.
On the 15th, the Ministry of National Defense said, “We held a Korea-US-Japan Security Meeting (DTT) in Washington, DC on the 14th (local time) to exchange assessments of the recent security environment on the Korean Peninsula and in the region, and discussed specific measures to promote security cooperation between Korea, the US and Japan.” said like this
The DTT was attended by Heo Tae-geun, director of policy at the South Korean side, Eli Ratner, assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security from the US, and Kazuo Masuda, director of defense policy at the Japanese Ministry of Defense, as senior representatives, respectively.
Representatives of the three countries will regularly conduct missile defense training and anti-submarine warfare training to deter and respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, and conduct trilateral training including maritime interdiction training and anti-piracy operations training to more effectively maintain peace and stability in the region. discussed plans for reopening.
South Korea, the U.S., and Japan have conducted anti-submarine warfare and search-and-rescue drills one after another on the 3rd and 4th of this month in the high seas south of Jeju, with the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier “Nimitz” (CVN-68) participating. Anti-submarine warfare training between South Korea, the U.S. and Japan has been six months since last September, and search and rescue training has been seven years since 2016.
Korea, the U.S., and Japan are promoting the real-time sharing of information on missile warnings launched by North Korea, which was agreed upon by the leaders of the three countries during the trilateral summit held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on November 13 last year. In this regard, at this DTT, matters in progress to make the most of the existing information system, including the Korea-US-Japan Information Sharing Agreement (TISA), were reviewed.
The US side fully supported the promise to further strengthen communication and cooperation between defense authorities based on the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) signed between the two countries for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the region.
In addition, the representatives of the three countries voiced the need to strengthen trilateral security cooperation to deter North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats and promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region.
They strongly condemned North Korea’s continued nuclear and missile provocations and violations of UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCR), including illegal maritime exchanges, and reaffirmed the common goal of the international community that North Korea should fully comply with its obligations under relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
Representatives of the three countries also urged North Korea to immediately stop its destabilizing activities and warned that any nuclear test would face a strong and decisive response from the international community.
The US side emphasized that the defense commitments to the Republic of Korea and Japan are iron-clad, and that they are supported by defense capabilities in all categories, including nuclear.
The representatives of the three countries reaffirmed that the ‘way of dialogue’ for a peaceful and diplomatic resolution of the conflict with North Korea was still open, and urged North Korea to return to negotiations.
In this regard, the Ministry of National Defense said, “The representatives of the United States and Japan expressed support for the goal of the ROK government’s ‘Bold Initiative’, which is in line with the three countries’ common will to achieve complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”
In addition, the representatives of the three countries discussed the security situation in the Indo-Pacific region and reaffirmed their common will for a rules-based international order, emphasizing the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
The representatives of the three countries reaffirmed that they stand with Ukraine against Russia’s brutal and unjustifiable war of aggression, and that this war is a grave violation of territorial integrity and sovereignty and undermines the entire structure of the international order.
The DTT has been held alternately by Korea, the US and Japan since 2008, but it has not been held for a while since the videoconference in May 2020. The global epidemic of the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19) and the deterioration of Korea-Japan relations were greatly affected.
Regarding the DTT, which resumed after about three years, the Ministry of National Defense said, “It has been confirmed that it has contributed significantly to the substantial progress of security cooperation between Korea, the United States and Japan,” and explained, “We have agreed to hold the 14th DTT next year in South Korea at a mutually agreed time.” .
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.