South Korea and the United States agreed to beef up cooperation in "each" area of America's extended deterrence against evolving North Korean threats during their regular defense talks in Washington earlier this week, both sides said Thursday.
They held the Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) on Tuesday and Wednesday, amid joint efforts to enhance the credibility of the U.S.' deterrence commitment to mobilizing the full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear, to defend its ally.
The allies' security collaboration has gained traction as Pyongyang has been ratcheting up tensions through continued weapons tests, including the launch of a ballistic missile Thursday morning and the testing of underwater nuclear attack drones earlier this month and last month.
"Both sides committed to strengthen cooperation in each area of extended deterrence, including information sharing, joint planning and execution, consultation mechanisms and crisis communication in preparation for DPRK threats," the joint statement by Seoul's defense ministry and the Pentagon reads.
DPRK refers to the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The allies' agreement was from a session of the Deterrence Strategy Committee (DSC) attached to the KIDD. At the session, they also agreed to accelerate the expansion of South Korea's role under the combined defense system.
The agreement appears to reflect Seoul's efforts to deepen its involvement in the planning and execution of Washington's extended deterrence commitment so as to sharpen its defense against Pyongyang's threats, observers said.
The joint statement also carried a stern warning to the North.
"The two sides emphasized that any nuclear attack by North Korea against the United States or its allies and partners is unacceptable and will result in the end of the Kim regime," the statement reads, referring to the outcome from a session of the Security Policy Initiative (SPI) under the KIDD.
At the SPI, the allies reaffirmed their shared goal of the "complete and verifiable denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula, and concurred on the need to conduct "practical" combined exercises and trainings during the latter half of the year.
During the KIDD executive session, they pledged to work closely together to implement their respective regional initiatives -- Seoul's Strategy for a Free, Peaceful and Prosperous Indo-Pacific Region and Washington's Indo-Pacific Strategy -- so as to promote regional peace and stability.
The joint statement also included the two countries' commitment to "maintaining peace and stability, lawful unimpeded commerce, and international norms such as freedom of navigation and overflight and other lawful use of the seas in the Indo-Pacific region."
In the latest KIDD session, Deputy Defense Minister for Policy Heo Tae-keun led the South Korean delegation, while the U.S. side was headed by Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia Siddharth Mohandas.
Launched in 2011, the KIDD is a comprehensive senior-level defense meeting between the allies. The last session was held in Seoul in August last year. It includes several dialogue bodies, including the SPI and DSC.
Source: Yonhap News Agency