“South Korean and US Leaders Agree on Measures to Strengthen Extended Deterrence Against North Korea”

President Yoon Seok-yeol and US President Joe Biden held a summit in Washington on the 26th (local time) and announced the’Washington Declaration’, which contains measures to strengthen South Korea-US extended deterrence against North Korean nuclear and missile threats. The two leaders agreed to create a new consultative body, the “South Korea-US Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG),” that covers information sharing, joint planning, and joint implementation of extended deterrence. After the summit that day, President Yoon held a joint press conference with President Biden in the Rose Garden of the White House and said, “In the face of North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, our two leaders are not ‘fake peace’ relying on the goodwill of the other side, but an overwhelming force. In order to achieve peace through superiority, we decided to drastically strengthen extended deterrence between the two countries,” he said. The ‘Washington Declaration’ is a separate document from the joint statement, and this is the first time that a separate document on extended deterrence has been adopted by the leaders of the two countries. Regarding the Nuclear Consultation Group, which is the backbone of the ‘Washington Declaration’, President Yoon said, “South Korea and the United States agreed to have immediate summit talks in the event of a nuclear attack by North Korea, and through this, a swift, “We promised to take an overwhelming and decisive response,” he said. “South Korea and the U.S. will share information on plans to operate nuclear and strategic weapons in response to the North Korean nuclear threat, and regularly discuss plans for planning and executing joint operations that combine South Korea’s advanced conventional forces with U.S. nuclear forces,” he said. ” he said. President Biden also said at a press conference, “North Korea’s nuclear attack on the United States, its allies, or partners is unacceptable,” and if North Korea launches a nuclear attack, “it will bring about the end of the regime.” The two leaders agreed to strengthen on-the-ground simulation exercises to prepare for a nuclear crisis and expand the deployment of US nuclear strategic assets on the Korean Peninsula. Regarding the Korea-US Nuclear Consultation Group, President Biden said, “As the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, I will have the authority to use nuclear strategic weapons in the United States, but I will agree and consult with allies in all other efforts at various stages.” “We will not redeploy nuclear strategic weapons on the Korean Peninsula, but we will be able to deploy nuclear submarines close to it,” he added. In addition, the two leaders decided to start discussions on applying the ROK-US Mutual Defense Treaty to cyberspace so that the ROK-US alliance can be expanded to cyberspace. Announced the adoption of a new strategic cybersecurity cooperation framework. With this meeting as an opportunity, the ‘Joint Statement by the Presidents of the Republic of Korea and the United States on the Identification of Korean War Medal of Honor Recipients’ was also adopted. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Semiconductor Science Act, which are key economic and security concerns that are causing damage to Korean companies, were also on the agenda for this summit, but the joint statement contained only the principle of “promising to continue close consultations.” The two leaders also agreed on a plan to expand aid to Ukraine, which is at war with Russia. The two leaders stated in a joint statement that they would “resolutely respond to Russia’s flagrant violations of international law and continue to support Ukraine by providing essential political, security, humanitarian and economic assistance, including expanding electricity production and transmission and rebuilding critical infrastructure.” did. Although support for lethal weapons was not specified, it is interpreted that the possibility was not ruled out either. In the joint statement, “President Biden welcomes President Yoon’s sweeping measures to improve Korea-Japan relations and strongly supports the expansion of Korea-Japan cooperation, which leads to deepening trilateral cooperation on regional and economic security.” It also includes the will to strengthen Japanese cooperation. Washington/Reporter Mi-Na Kim [email protected] Washington/Correspondent Bon-Young Lee [email protected]