President Yoon Suk Yeol said Tuesday that South Korea’s alliance with the United States has been elevated to a “nuclear-based” one capable of deterring the North’s nuclear threats following their signing of joint nuclear deterrence guidelines.
Last week, Yoon and U.S. President Joe Biden adopted the “Nuclear Deterrence and Nuclear Operations on the Korean Peninsula” on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Washington.
“The U.S. will assign a special mission to its nuclear assets for the Korean Peninsula both in wartime and peacetime,” Yoon said during a Cabinet meeting. “We have established a posture to respond swiftly and effectively to any kind of North Korean nuclear threat.”
The signing of the guidelines was a culmination of the bilateral Nuclear Consultative Group’s efforts to ensure the credibility of America’s “extended deterrence” commitment to South Korea in an integrated way that includes South Korea’s conventional support for U.S. nuclear operations in a conti
ngency.
Extended deterrence refers to a U.S. pledge to mobilize the full range of its military capabilities, including nuclear arms, to defend its ally.
During his U.S. trip, Yoon also visited the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii, where he stressed the importance of combined defense capabilities between South Korea and the U.S. to counter North Korean threats.
President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a Cabinet meeting held at the presidential office in Seoul on July 16, 2024. (Yonhap)
Yoon said South Korea’s teaming up with NATO’s Indo-Pacific partners — Japan, Australia and New Zealand — is meaningful as they voiced against North Korea’s military cooperation with Russia and paved the way for “institutionalization” of the grouping’s further cooperation with NATO.
During the meeting, Yoon also urged relevant ministries to swiftly implement support measures for regions grappling with damage from the recent heavy downpour.
On Monday, the government designated five areas in the central and southern region
s as special disaster zones, which make them eligible for financial support for recovery work, relief funds for victims and other benefits.
“Relevant ministries need to swiftly execute support measures for the special disaster zones and mobilize all available personnel and equipment for the recovery efforts,” Yoon said.
Source: Yonhap News Agency
