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| President Yoon Suk Yeol looks at a special exhibition on the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-U.S. alliance at the National Museum of Korean Contemporary History in downtown Seoul, June 25, making the 73rd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War. Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hoon |
By Jung Min-ho
The inaugural meeting between South Korea and the United States on the operation of U.S. nuclear weapons in response to North Korea's growing security threats will be held in Seoul on July 18.
According to the presidential office, Saturday, the meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group will be co-chaired by Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo, White House Indo-Pacific coordinator Kurt Campbell and U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Acquisition Cara Abercrombie.
The allies had initially planned to appoint deputy minister-level delegates to lead the talks but decided to elevate the discussions to the vice minister level for the upcoming session, officials in Seoul said.
"Issues including information-sharing, consultation mechanisms as well as joint planning and execution are expected to be discussed to bolster nuclear deterrence against North Korea," the presidential office said in a statement. "Through regular (quarterly) meetings, we expect South Korea and the U.S. to build up strong joint capabilities, including nuclear, as part of the extended deterrence."
The meeting comes after President Yoon Suk Yeol reached an agreement with U.S. President Joe Biden during their summit in April to establish the first official communication channel on U.S. nuclear weapons.
Under the agreement, if North Korea were to attack the South with nuclear weapons, Washington would respond overwhelmingly with its "full range of U.S. capabilities, including nuclear." The U.S. also promised to further enhance the regular visibility of strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula.
Speaking at a White House press briefing, Friday (local time), U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said he spoke with his South Korean counterpart the previous night to discuss preparations for the meeting.
"It will be an important meeting. There will be high-level participation by the United States because this is an important issue on which we place priority," Sullivan said. "And you will see in this meeting that we are quite serious about taking this effort forward."
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