Seoul – South Korea and the United States will hold talks in Seoul on Monday to improve allied nuclear response during North Korea war, amid rising concerns about its growing arsenal, Seoul officials said.
The Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) meeting 3 is meant to be a follow-up to last year’s summit where the US pledged to provide more details of its nuclear plans with regards to an armed conflict against the north.
This happened as North Korea has continued advancing its nuclear weapons systems and their delivery vehicles, raising questions in South Korea about reliance on “extended deterrence” or essentially the American nuclear umbrella.
Several politicians including some senior members of Yoon Suk Yeol’s party have proposed that Seoul should develop own nuclear weapons, a step opposed by Washington.
Towards the end of May, North Korea failed in launching a military reconnaissance satellite after a newly made rocket engine exploded while it was still airborne. Seoul and Washington condemned it as a violation of U.N. Security Council sanctions prohibiting Pyongyang from employing ballistic technology.
The most recent discussions will be led by Cho Chang-rae, South Korean deputy defense minister for policy and Vipin Narang who is currently acting as an Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy at the US department of defense.
At their second gathering in December both sides warned that any potential North Korean nuclear attack on America or her allies would lead to “a swift overwhelming and decisive response” ending Kim Jong Un’s regime.
Last week at Singapore’s annual Shangri-La Dialogue security conference, South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met when they confirmed their commitment towards denuclearization of North Korea as well as continuing efforts aimed at strengthening American extended deterrence.
