US President Joe Biden has said that he and his South Korean counterpart, Yoon Suk-yeol, committed at their summit in Seoul to continue strengthening the “deterrent posture” on the peninsula in the face of the “threats” posed by Korea from North.
Biden has stated that the two discussed various regional security issues “including addressing the threat posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea’s official name) by further strengthening our deterrent posture and working toward complete denuclearization.” of the Korean peninsula”.
North Korea has shown no interest in resuming the disarmament dialogue in the last two years despite repeated offers from the US and, after approving a weapons modernization plan last year, has carried out a record number of missile launches. missiles this year and is set to conduct its first nuclear test since 2017.
For his part, Yoon said that North Korea’s “nuclear and missile capabilities are advancing every day”, that both leaders share “deep concern about it” and that for this reason they have agreed to deploy “US strategic assets” on the peninsula without add specific details.
The South Korean president said the two also agreed that the two countries’ military drills, which North Korea sees as a rehearsal to invade its territory, “should be expanded” to counter Pyongyang’s weapons advances.
Biden also spoke of the shared mission of both allies when it comes to “defending democratic values and the rule of law” and thanked South Korea for its support “for the people of Ukraine”, emphasizing that the “Russian invasion is an attack to democracy, sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
The US president also said that he and Yoon again stressed the need to promote “stability in the Taiwan Strait and freedom of navigation, including the South China Sea.”
Biden has highlighted the analyzes that point to the US growing more this year than China, warning that “it is never a good bet to bet against the US.” and again underlined the importance of strengthening supply chains, one of the main points of the White House tenant’s visit to Asia.
The two leaders promised to cooperate through the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), an initiative to strengthen commercial ties between the US and Asia that many consider to be trying to sideline Beijing.
Many critics also believe that it does not really offer real incentives to access the US market and follows the protectionist line of Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump.
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