Korea hosts conference in Washington on expanding defense cooperation with US

Vice Defense Minister Lee Doo-hee delivers an opening address at a conference on South Korea-U.S. defense cooperation in Washington, June 23. Courtesy of defense ministry

Korea's defense ministry held a conference in Washington this week to discuss ways to expand cooperation with the United States in the defense and arms industries, ministry officials said Wednesday.

The conference, hosted by Vice Defense Minister Lee Doo-hee on Tuesday (local time), brought together some 120 people, including Michael Vaccaro, the acting principal deputy assistant secretary of state, according to the officials.

During the event, the participants discussed ways to materialize bilateral defense cooperation, including on shipbuilding and maintenance, repair and operations, as an axis of the South Korea-U.S. alliance.

The conference also covered deepening cooperation on advanced weapons systems and technologies, such as artificial intelligence and manned-unmanned teaming systems, to address future warfare.

The defense ministry said it plans to develop the conference into a platform to support the entry of domestic companies into overseas markets in coordination with the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency starting this year.