Bilateral South Korea-US consulting group meets in response to North Korean nuclear threats
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A bilateral consulting group of South Korean and U.S. officials met Tuesday in Seoul to discuss strengthening their nations’ deterrence capabilities against North Korea’s evolving nuclear threats.
The Nuclear Consultative Group was established as part of agreements Presidents Joe Biden and Yoon Suk Yeol made when they met in April.
Seoul officials say the body is tasked with sharing information on nuclear and strategic weapons operation plans and discussing joint operations. The U.S. would retain operational control of U.S. nuclear weapons, and Washington officials say the group’s establishment and other steps announced in April were meant to ease South Korean worries about North Korean provocations while keeping Seoul from pursuing its own nuclear program.
The group’s inaugural meeting “will serve as an important starting point to establish powerful, effective Korea-U.S. extended deterrence,” Yoon said during a televised Cabinet Council meeting, referring to a U.S. security commitment to use full U.S. capabilities, including nuclear, to protect its allies.