ROK-US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairmen "Reaffirm Continuous Extended Deterrence Provision"

Kim Seung-gyeom, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Attends First MCM... Discusses Security Issues with U.S. Side

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The United States has committed to providing continuous extended deterrence.

On the 20th, the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that General Kim Seung-gyeom, Chairman of the Republic of Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Mark A. Milley, Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, held the 47th ROK-U.S. Military Committee Meeting (MCM) on the 19th (local time) at the U.S. Department of Defense (Pentagon). Representing Korea were Chairman Kim and Lee Young-soo, Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Strategic Planning Division, while the U.S. side was represented by Chairman Milley and Admiral John Aquilino, Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. General Paul LaCamera, Commander of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command, also attended on behalf of the Combined Forces Command.

This meeting was the first face-to-face ROK-U.S. Military Committee meeting held since Chairman Kim took office on July 5, 2022. The two chairmen reaffirmed their joint commitment and the enduring strength of the ROK-U.S. alliance, discussing overall alliance security issues including regional and Korean Peninsula security assessments, development of combined defense posture, and the promotion of wartime operational control (OPCON) transfer based on conditions.

Additionally, the two chairmen received reports on the regional and Korean Peninsula security environment, discussing North Korea’s nuclear threats, missile launches, ongoing provocations, and other actions causing instability in the region along with corresponding responses. Chairman Milley reaffirmed the U.S. defense commitment to South Korea, including the provision of continuous extended deterrence, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The two chairmen were also briefed on the joint exercise "Ulchi Freedom Shield" (UFS), conducted in August, and highly evaluated the significant progress in the conditions-based wartime OPCON transfer, including the successful evaluation of the future Combined Forces Command’s Full Operational Capability (FOC) during the UFS exercise.

They also shared a mutual understanding of the importance of continued efforts toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, as well as defense and security cooperation to maintain peace and prosperity on the Peninsula and a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The ROK-U.S. Military Committee meeting is an annual meeting held to provide strategic directives and operational guidance for the defense of the Republic of Korea to the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command and to discuss alliance military issues between the two countries. Since its first meeting in 1978, it has been held annually, alternating between Seoul and Washington, D.C.

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