ROK-U.S. News

By Byun Duk-kun

WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 (Yonhap) — The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States have agreed to further expand the countries’ joint military exercises amid intensifying North Korean provocations, they said in a joint statement released Tuesday.

South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also agreed to continue taking strong steps against North Korean provocations.

“The two leaders also pledged to further expand and bolster the level and scale of this year’s combined exercises and training,” said the joint statement released by the U.S. Department of Defense.

“To this end, the two leaders concurred on the need to take into account changes in the security environment, including the DPRK’s recent steps with respect to its nuclear and missile programs, to strengthen combined exercises and training, including the upcoming combined bilateral exercises,” it added.

DPRK stands for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the North’s official name.

Lee and Austin held a bilateral meeting in Seoul on Tuesday (Seoul time). The U.S. defense chief is on a trip to the region that will also take him to the Philippines.

North Korea fired 69 ballistic missiles, including eight intercontinental ballistic missiles, in 2022 alone, marking a new annual record that far exceeded the previous record of 25 ballistic missiles launched in a year.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has also called for “exponential” growth of his country’s nuclear arsenal, while Pyongyang said in September that its new nuclear law would allow it to “preemptively” use its nuclear weapons against South Korea and the U.S. in case of any contingency.

Lee and Austin strongly condemned the North’s continued provocations and violations of United Nations Security Council resolutions, which prohibit North Korea from ballistic missile testing, according to their joint statement.

“They also affirmed that the ROK-U.S. alliance, along with the international community, will continue to take a strong stance against any further provocations by the DPRK,” it said.

The defense chiefs also reaffirmed measures to enhance the implementation of U.S. extended deterrence to underscore the U.S. security commitment to South Korea, according to their joint statement.

To this end, the countries will hold the Deterrence Strategy Committee table-top exercise next month, “in order to facilitate alliance discussions on deterrence and response options to deal with the DPRK nuclear threat,” it said.

“Minister Lee and Secretary Austin also discussed measures to strengthen regional security cooperation including ROK-U.S.-Japan trilateral security cooperation,” it added.

bdk@yna.co.kr
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Article: https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20230131012600325?section=national/defense

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SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Yonhap) — South Korea and the United States staged combined air drills, involving B-1B strategic bombers and F-22 and F-35B stealth fighters from the U.S. Air Force, in a show of Washington’s “will and capabilities” against North Korean threats, Seoul’s defense ministry said Thursday.

The allies conducted the drills over the Yellow Sea — the first of their kind this year — on Wednesday. The drills also involved F-35A fighter jets from the South.

“The combined air drills this time show the U.S.’ will and capabilities to provide strong and credible extended deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats,” the ministry said in a press release.

Extended deterrence means the U.S.’ commitment to use a full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear, to defend its ally.

The defense ministry noted that the drills were in line with an agreement from the two countries’ summit last year to deploy U.S. strategic assets in a “timely and coordinated” manner, and that the drills reflected their “firm” determination for national security as an “alliance that acts.”

“Going forward, the two countries will enhance our citizens’ confidence in the U.S.’ extended deterrence by strengthening combined drills in connection with the deployment of the U.S.’ strategic assets,” it said.

The latest drills came as some in South Korea raised doubts over the credibility of Washington’s extended deterrence amid Pyongyang’s persistent push to develop a nuclear-tipped long-range missile capable of striking the U.S. mainland.

In Seoul on Tuesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said there would be more deployments of such advanced military assets involving F-22 and F-35 jets to ensure the U.S.’ security commitment.

sshluck@yna.co.kr
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Article: https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20230202000252325?section=national/defense

News articles do not necessarily reflect the views of KDVA. Any copyrighted materials depicted on this web site are presented for educational purposes only and no claim of ownership is made by KDVA.

By Kim Soo-yeon and Chae Yun-hwan

SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Yonhap) — North Korea said Thursday it will take the “toughest reaction” to the U.S. move to expand joint military exercises with South Korea, as the U.S. defense chief has pledged to deploy more strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula to ensure its security commitment.

The North’s warning came as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Seoul earlier this week for talks with his South Korean counterpart and said there would be more deployments of strategic assets, including F-22 and F-35 jets, to Korea in order to deter the North’s evolving military threats.

Pyongyang’s foreign ministry claimed the United States has been driving the security situation on the peninsula toward an “extreme red-line” and is pushing to spur further tensions through joint military drills of larger scale and scope with South Korea.

“This is a vivid expression of the U.S. dangerous scenario which will result in turning the Korean Peninsula into a huge war arsenal and a more critical war zone,” it said in an English-language statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

North Korea will “take the toughest reaction” to any military action by the U.S. under the principle of “nuke for nuke and an all-out confrontation for an all-out confrontation,” it added.

“If the U.S. continues to introduce strategic assets into the Korean Peninsula and its surrounding area, the DPRK will make clearer its deterring activities without fail according to their nature,” it read, using the acronym of the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

The North said it is ready to counter any military challenges from the U.S. with the “most overwhelming nuclear force,” while stressing it is not interested in any dialogue with the U.S. as long as Washington pursues a “hostile policy.”

Hours earlier, South Korea and the U.S. staged combined air drills, involving B-1B strategic bombers, as well as F-22 and F-35B stealth fighters, from the U.S. Air Force, in a show of Washington’s “will and capabilities” to provide credible extended deterrence against North Korea’s military threats.

In a related move, the allies plan to hold discussion-based table-top exercises this month to sharpen extended deterrence. Extended deterrence refers to the U.S.’ commitment to use a full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear, to defend its ally.

The White House, meanwhile, said it has no hostile intent toward Pyongyang, rejecting its claim that the allies’ joint military exercises are provocative.

“We have made clear we have no hostile intent toward the DPRK and seek serious and sustained diplomacy to address the full range of issues of concern to both countries and the region,” a spokesperson for the National Security Council stated.

North Korea launched around 70 ballistic missiles last year alone, the most in a single year, amid persistent speculation it may conduct a nuclear test in the near future.

The North’s leader Kim Jong-un called for an “exponential” increase in its nuclear arsenal and the need to mass-produce tactical nuclear weapons at a key party meeting held late last year.

North Korea is likely to hold a military parade next Wednesday to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of its armed forces in a bid to flex its military muscle.

In response to the North’s statement, Seoul’s unification ministry reiterated calls for the North to refrain from taking provocative acts and return to the dialogue table.

yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr

sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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Yonhap Article: https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20230202000454325?section=nk/nk

News articles do not necessarily reflect the views of KDVA. Any copyrighted materials depicted on this web site are presented for educational purposes only and no claim of ownership is made by KDVA.