Japan, S.Korea and U.S. to conduct trilateral defense ministerial

The U.S. Department of Defense said today that defense officials from the U.S., Japan and South Korea will conduct a Trilateral Defense Ministerial soon.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner, Republic of Korea (ROK) Deputy Minister for National Defense Policy Kim Man-gi, and Japanese Director General for Defense Policy Masuda Kazuo conducted a call today to discuss regional security affairs.

The officials discussed the threat posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) nuclear missile programs, regional security, and concrete means of strengthening trilateral defense cooperation to bolster security.

Kim called for North Korea to halt activities that heighten tension and urged the regime to resume dialogue and take a diplomatic path.

Pyongyang tested a Hwasong-12 intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM). It has conducted a record number of seven missile launches in the past month alone.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken held bilateral discussions with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts last week week, while other top U.S. officials, including special representative for North Korea Sung Kim, engaged trilaterally with their South Korean and Japanese counterparts.