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South China Morning Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
US calls for closer South Korea-Japan defence ties amid ‘unprecedented' China-North threat
America's highest-ranking military officer has called for closer trilateral defence ties with South Korea and Japan in response to what he described as an 'unprecedented' military build-up by North Korea and China. The remarks by General Dan Caine, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, come amid growing pressure on Seoul to shoulder more of the cost of hosting 28,500 US troops and to support their expanded role beyond the Korean peninsula – a move that could test South Korea's willingness to align more closely with US regional strategy. 'Our focus in the United States remains on re-establishing deterrence and doing so needs and requires the trilateral cooperation between our three countries,' Caine said at a meeting on Friday with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, Admiral Kim Myung-soo and General Yoshihide Yoshida, in Seoul. 'The DPRK [North Korea] and China are undergoing an unprecedented military build-up with a clear and unambiguous intent to move forward with their own agendas,' he added. US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force General Dan Caine (left) and Admiral Kim Myung-soo, chairman of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, inspect a guard of honour at the Ministry of National Defence in Seoul on Thursday. Photo: AFP Following the meeting, the three military leaders issued a joint statement condemning Pyongyang's 'unlawful' weapons development and reaffirming efforts to work towards the complete denuclearisation of North Korea.
South China Morning Post
3 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
US calls for closer South Korea, Japan defence ties amid ‘unprecedented' China-North threat
America's highest-ranking military officer has called for closer trilateral defence ties with South Korea and Japan in response to what he described as an 'unprecedented' military build-up by North Korea and China. Advertisement The remarks by General Dan Caine, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, come amid growing pressure on Seoul to shoulder more of the cost of hosting 28,500 US troops and to support their expanded role beyond the Korean peninsula – a move that could test South Korea's willingness to align more closely with US regional strategy. 'Our focus in the United States remains on re-establishing deterrence and doing so needs and requires the trilateral cooperation between our three countries,' Caine said at a meeting on Friday with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts, Admiral Kim Myung-soo and General Yoshihide Yoshida, in Seoul. 'The DPRK [North Korea] and China are undergoing an unprecedented military build-up with a clear and unambiguous intent to move forward with their own agendas,' he added. US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force General Dan Caine (left) and Admiral Kim Myung-soo, chairman of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, inspect a guard of honour at the Ministry of National Defence in Seoul on Thursday. Photo: AFP Following the meeting, the three military leaders issued a joint statement condemning Pyongyang's 'unlawful' weapons development and reaffirming efforts to work towards the complete denuclearisation of North Korea. Advertisement
NHK
4 days ago
- Politics
- NHK
Defense chiefs of Japan, US, S.Korea reaffirm cooperation against Pyongyang
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.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
South Korea, U.S. and Japan hold aerial drill in demonstration of strength against North Korea
Gen, Yoshihide Yoshida, 1st right, Chief of Staff, Joint Staff of Japan, Adm. Kim Myung-soo, chairman of the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, and John Daniel Caine, left, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, pose during a Trilateral Chiefs of Defense meeting at the Defense Ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, Pool) SEOUL, South Korea — Top South Korean, U.S. and Japanese military officers urged North Korea to cease all unlawful activities that threaten regional security, as the three nations flew advanced warplanes for a joint exercise in a show of force against the North. The development came Friday as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was to travel to North Korea amid booming military and other cooperation between the two countries that have raised concerns among their neighbors. During their regular meeting in Seoul on Friday, the chairmen of the joint chiefs of staff from South Korea, the U.S. and Japan discussed North Korea's deployment of troops to Russia to support its war against Ukraine and Russia's potential transfer of military technology to North Korea in return. 'They urged the DPRK to immediately cease all unlawful activities to destabilize the Korean Peninsula, the Indo-Pacific, and beyond, and pledged to continue working together to respond to the DPRK's threats,' according to a joint press statement. DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's formal name. North Korea and Russia have grown sharply closer in recent years, with North Korea supplying thousands of troops and ammunitions to Russia in return for economic and military assistance. Seoul, Washington and their partners worry Russia might provide North Korea with sensitive technologies that can enhance its nuclear and missile programs as well. The three joint chiefs of staff chairmen — South Korea's Kim Myung-soo, the United States' Dan Caine and Japan's Yoshida Yoshihide — discussed various ways to deepen their cooperation in order to ensure peace and stability in the region, according to the joint statement. Also Friday, the three countries staged a trilateral aerial drill in international waters off South Korea's southern Jeju island. The training, which involves nuclear-capable B-52H bombers from the U.S., is meant to improve the deterrence and response capabilities against North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats, according to South Korea's Defense Ministry. In recent years, South Korea, the U.S. and Japan have been expanding or restarting their regular military training exercises to cope with North Korea's enlarging nuclear arsenal. North Korea views such U.S.-led drills as invasion rehearsals and often responds with missile tests. Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, was to begin a three-day trip to North Korea on Friday, according to North Korean and Russian state media reports earlier this week. Russia's Tass news agency, citing Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, reported Wednesday that Lavrov's North Korea trip was part of the second round of 'strategic dialogue' with his North Korean counterpart Choe Son Hui. Lavrov and Choe's earlier meeting took place in November in Moscow. Some South Korean analysts said Lavrov may discuss arranging a visit by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to Russia. Hyung-jin Kim, The Associated Press
CNA
4 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
South Korea, US and Japan top military chiefs meet in Seoul
SEOUL: The top military chiefs of South Korea, the United States and Japan met in Seoul on Friday (Jul 11), as US President Donald Trump piles pressure on Washington's allies over defence spending and trade. General Dan Caine, the top US military officer, held talks with his South Korean counterpart Kim Myung-soo, and Japan's General Yoshihide Yoshida, as part of an annual meeting on regional security. They discussed growing military ties between Moscow and Pyongyang, which has sent weapons and thousands of troops for Russia's war in Ukraine. The talks covered "the potential transfer of military technology from Russia to the DPRK", the three military chiefs said in a statement which used North Korea's official name. They called on the nuclear-armed North to "immediately cease" all such unlawful activities. Speaking at the start of the trilateral talks, Caine said that North Korea and China are both "undergoing an unprecedented military build up with a clear and unambiguous intent to move forward with their own agendas". "We need to be mindful of that, we need to be able to demonstrate resolve, to be entrepreneurial and proactive in our partnerships," he added. Separately, the three countries conducted joint air drills on Friday over South Korea's southern island of Jeju, involving a US B-52H strategic bomber, according to the defence ministry. Washington, Seoul's long-time security ally, stations around 28,500 troops in the South. The two countries signed a new five-year agreement in 2024 on sharing the cost of those troops, but this week Trump said South Korea is "paying very little for the military". Trump, who has also threatened Seoul with 25 per cent tariffs unless they can negotiate a trade deal, said South Korea "should be paying for their military". South Korea's foreign ministry said this week that they were "committed to faithfully implementing" the defence cost deal, "which was validly concluded and has entered into force".
