Washington: The United States has reaffirmed its commitment to providing extended deterrence to South Korea during its first meeting of a key nuclear deterrence body under U.S. President Donald Trump's second term, officials stated.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the allies conducted the fifth meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) in Washington on Thursday, as reported by Seoul's defense ministry. This week's meeting was led by Kim Hong-cheol, the deputy minister for national defense policy, and Robert Soofer, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense in charge of nuclear deterrence, chemical and biological policy.
A joint press statement revealed that Soofer reiterated the U.S. commitment to provide extended deterrence to South Korea, utilizing the full range of U.S. defense capabilities, including nuclear. Kim emphasized that South Korea will take a "leading role" in the conventional defense of the Korean Peninsula.
The allies "reviewed the progress on NCG workstreams and recognized the NCG as an enduring bilateral consultative body to strengthen the U.S.-ROK Alliance and enhance extended deterrence," the statement added. ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official name.
This week's NCG meeting was the first such discussion since January and also the first under Trump's second term. The NCG was established following a summit between former President Yoon Suk Yeol and former U.S. President Joe Biden in April 2023. The nuclear deterrence body aims to bolster the credibility of the U.S. extended deterrence commitment to using the full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear, to defend South Korea.
With the NCG session not held for nearly a year under Trump's second term, speculation had emerged regarding whether the U.S. might reconsider maintaining the NCG scheme or its extended deterrence commitment to South Korea.
The joint statement further mentioned that both sides assessed NCG activities, such as "conventional-nuclear integration" table-top exercises, which help enhance the alliance's cooperative decision-making for potential nuclear contingencies on the Korean Peninsula.
Additionally, the allies approved future plans and activities for the sixth NCG meeting, scheduled for the first half of 2026.