The United States and South Korea have vowed to use all available means to counter North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, and warned the regime of a “decisive response” to any nuclear attack on its southern neighbor or any other US ally.
The two countries issued a joint statement on Friday after holding the 4th annual high-level Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) meeting in Seoul, where they discussed ways to strengthen their deterrence and defense posture against the North’s provocations.
The statement said that both sides shared their assessments and concerns about the North’s “threatening and irresponsible rhetoric and behavior, including its ongoing missile launches and continued pursuit of destabilizing and illicit WMD [weapons of mass destruction] and ballistic missile programs.”
The statement also reaffirmed the commitment of both nations to the complete denuclearization of the North in accordance with the relevant United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, and emphasized that the North’s ballistic missile launches and other illicit activities seriously undermine regional and global security.
The two sides agreed to further enhance coordination to address the North’s sanctions evasion and illicit cyber activities, using diplomatic, informational, military, and economic tools. The United States reiterated its strong support for the goals of the South Korea’s Audacious Initiative, which aims to achieve peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula through dialogue and cooperation.
The statement also expressed the “strongest concern” about the cooperation between North Korea and Russia, which it said undermines regional and global security. The two sides agreed on the importance of upholding and fully implementing all relevant UNSC resolutions, which impose sanctions on the North for its nuclear and missile activities.
The statement said that the United States underlined its ironclad and unwavering security commitment to South Korea, using the full range of US defense capabilities, including nuclear, conventional, missile defense, and other advanced non-nuclear capabilities, to provide extended deterrence for South Korea.
“Both sides reaffirmed that any nuclear attack by the DPRK against the ROK will be met with a swift, overwhelming, and decisive response,” the statement said. It also called “unacceptable” the North’s nuclear attacks against the United States or its allies, adding that it would result in “the end of the Kim regime.”
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