Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

At the 45th ROK-US Military Committee Meeting,
the two countries reaffirmed an unshakable Korean Peninsula defense commitment;
gave high evaluation to the ‘Fight Tonight’ readiness posture

The 45th Republic of Korea(ROK)-United States(US) Military Committee Meeting (MCM), attended by the ROK and US JCS chairpersons, was held via videoconference in the conference room of the headquarters of the JCS on the night of October 13 (Korean time), in order to provide the commander of the ROK-US Combined Forces Command with strategic directions and operational guidance for the defense of the ROK, and to discuss military issues related to the bilateral alliance.

The meeting was attended by Chairman of the JCS Won In-cheol and Deputy Director of Strategy Planning Headquarters of the JCS Jung Sang-hwa from the ROK, Chairperson of the JCS Mark Milley, Commander of US Indo-Pacific Command Philip Davidson, and Commander of ROK-US Combined Forces Command Robert Abrams from the US.

Stressing that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War, Won and Milley agreed that the ROK-US alliance has continuously served as the linchpin of the security, stability, and prosperity of the Northeast Asia region for the past 70 years. They also performed a joint assessment of the recent security situation on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region, and discussed cooperative measures for strengthening the combined defense posture and promoting regional stability.

Sharing the assessment that “hosting the MCM in this critical period, despite the global COVID-19 pandemic, confirms the power, trust, and strategic flexibility of the ROK-US allliance,” the two chairpersons agreed to “strive to develop a forward-looking alliance.” Milley reaffirmed the US’s unwavering defense commitments on the Korean Peninsula, including extended deterrence.

“I highly appreciate the ROK-US alliance’s efforts to maintain the ‘Fight Tonight’ readiness posture despite the difficulties of COVID-19,” Won said. Acknowledging the importance of multinational partnerships in contributing to regional security and peace, the ROK and US JCS chairpersons also agreed to strive to further strengthen bilateral cooperation.

By Su-Yeol, Maeng <guns13@dema.mil.kr >

<Copyright ⓒ The Korea Defense Daily, All rights reserved>