US and South Korean Defense Chiefs to Develop Measures Regarding 'Deployment to North'

SCM Held at U.S. Department of Defense on the 30th
Possibility of Presenting Concrete Measures Such as Joint Actions

The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States will meet to discuss measures against North Korea's deployment of troops to Russia. If concrete plans emerge, it is expected that South Korea will take full-scale action in solidarity with the international community.

Defense Minister nominee Kim Yong-hyun is speaking at the confirmation hearing held at the National Assembly on the 2nd. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 30th, South Korea and the United States will hold the 56th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) near the U.S. Department of Defense (Pentagon) in Washington, D.C. on the same day. The SCM is a meeting where the defense ministers of the allied countries, South Korea and the U.S., receive final reports on major military policies and discuss current issues. This year’s SCM has highlighted the response to the global security situation caused by North Korea’s troop deployment to Russia as a key agenda item, in addition to military policies related to the South Korea-U.S. alliance.

The South Korean presidential office has already left open the possibility of providing offensive weapons to Ukraine. This indicates that joint actions or measures may be taken beyond mere rhetorical condemnation. So far, South Korea has dispatched high-level representatives from the National Intelligence Service and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to NATO to exchange information, and has also discussed the matter with the European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, suggesting that South Korea may now take a step further.

In addition to the defense chiefs of South Korea and the U.S., the 6th South Korea-U.S. Foreign and Defense Ministers’ Meeting (2+2) will be held on the 31st in Washington, D.C. This is the first 2+2 meeting in three years since it was last held in South Korea in 2021. The 2+2 meeting is also expected to address the major issue of North Korea’s troop deployment to Russia as well as North Korea’s provocative actions.

Following decisions by South Korea and the U.S., Europe is also expected to quickly decide on support measures. With North Korea’s involvement reigniting debates about troop deployment within Europe, the U.S. is discussing plans to involve NATO allies in Eastern Europe bordering Ukraine to strengthen Ukraine’s air defense network. This option had been approached cautiously due to concerns about escalation. However, recently, as South Korea? a non-NATO ally?has proposed providing lethal weapons to Ukraine, discussions about troop deployment and offensive weapon support have been spreading.