WASHINGTON: The United States, Japan and South Korea agreed to hold new trilateral joint military exercises this summer. This decision was announced in a joint statement issued by the US Department of Defense following a meeting of the defense ministers of the three allies.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Japan’s Defense Minister Minoru Kihara, and South Korea’s Defense Minister Shin Won-sik convened in Singapore on Sunday, on the sidelines of the annual Shangri-La Dialogue security summit.
During the meeting, the three defense leaders reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening trilateral cooperation to ensure peace and stability not only in the Korean Peninsula but also across the broader Indo-Pacific region.
READ ALSO: India Aiding Israel in Gaza Genocide by Supplying Lethal Explosive, Bombs
According to the joint statement, the trio agreed to establish a Trilateral Security Cooperation Framework within the year, aiming to institutionalize their three-way defense cooperation.
The defense officials also took the opportunity to condemn North Korea’s recent launches of ballistic missiles and a military spy satellite utilizing ballistic missile technology, deeming these actions as clear violations of United Nations Security Council resolutions.
