Defense chiefs of Japan, US, S.Korea reaffirm cooperation against Pyongyang

NHK

4 days ago

The top uniformed defense officials of Japan, the United States and South Korea have reaffirmed cooperation to address challenges posed by North Korea.
Japan's Self-Defense Forces' Joint Staff chief General Yoshida Yoshihide and his US and South Korean counterparts, General Dan Caine and Admiral Kim Myung-soo, met in Seoul on Friday.
It was the first visit by the SDF's top uniformed official to South Korea since 2010.
Yoshida said at the beginning of the meeting that he hopes "to build a concrete system so that the trilateral defense cooperation will not be affected by the political situation of individual countries."
Caine said North Korea and China are "undergoing an unprecedented military buildup."
Kim said continuous trilateral collaboration is important because the "North's nuclear and missile threats are advancing and regional security challenges exist."
In a joint statement issued after the meeting, they called on Pyongyang to immediately stop its nuclear and missile development programs and deployment of troops in Russia. It also stated that they recognized the importance of close trilateral cooperation in addressing security challenges posed by North Korea.
South Korea's defense ministry announced that the three countries held joint drills, in which a US strategic bomber participated, on Friday.
The South Korean administration of President Lee Jae-myung, who took office last month, aims to seek dialogue with the North. But the three countries made clear their intention to deepen their security cooperation with North Korea in mind.