US and South Korea Defense Ministries Discuss North Korean Missile Response Measures

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The South Korean and U.S. Departments of Defense are expected to discuss countermeasures against North Korea's recent test launches of a new long-range cruise missile and short-range ballistic missiles fired from trains.

On the 23rd, the Ministry of National Defense announced that the 20th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) will be held in Seoul on the 27th and 28th. KIDD was established under the 2011 SCM agreement, and this meeting will be co-chaired by Kim Man-ki, Director of Defense Policy, and Siddharth Mohandas, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia, with key defense and diplomatic officials from both countries attending.

During the meeting, the two defense ministries are expected to share assessments of the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and discuss cooperation on North Korea policies aimed at complete denuclearization and permanent peace settlement, as well as the conditional transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON).

Regarding the recent remarks by Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), that "North Korea is fully committed to its nuclear program," information sharing and situation assessments related to North Korea's nuclear activities are also anticipated.

Based on the discussions at this meeting, South Korea and the U.S. are expected to continue further talks at the Security Consultative Meeting (SCM), the annual meeting of the defense ministers of both countries, scheduled for November.

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