South Korean and U.S. Defense Ministers Visit JSA Today... Focus on Message to North Korea

South Korean and U.S. Defense Ministers Visit JSA Together for the First Time in Eight Years
Focus on Possible Progress in OPCON Transfer at the SCM

On November 3, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth will visit the Joint Security Area (JSA) at Panmunjom. With the North Korea-U.S. summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong Un, which was expected to take place on the sidelines of the 2025 Gyeongju APEC, ending without results, attention is focused on what message Secretary Hegseth will deliver to North Korea.

According to the Ministry of National Defense on November 3, Secretary Hegseth will visit the Panmunjom JSA in the afternoon together with Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek. This marks the first time in eight years that the defense ministers of South Korea and the United States have visited the JSA together, following the visit by former U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis and former Defense Minister Song Young-moo in October 2017.

There is keen interest in what message Secretary Hegseth will deliver to North Korea during this JSA visit, especially as the summit between President Trump and Chairman Kim has, for now, fallen through. Considering the Lee Jaemyung administration’s efforts to ease tensions with North Korea and President Trump’s continued proposals for dialogue, there is speculation that a message related to peace on the Korean Peninsula may be issued.

Meanwhile, Secretary Hegseth will also attend the 57th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) between South Korea and the United States, scheduled for November 4. This meeting will be the first official face-to-face summit between the two defense ministers since their appointments. Key agenda items include: ▲coordination on North Korea policy ▲combined defense posture ▲extended deterrence ▲regional security cooperation ▲cyber, space, and missile cooperation ▲defense industry cooperation, including shipbuilding, maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) ▲cooperation in defense science and technology.

Particular attention is being paid to whether there will be progress between the two countries regarding the transfer of wartime operational control. At the 27th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) held in September, both sides reviewed the status of the “conditions-based OPCON transfer plan” agreed upon by South Korea and the United States, and reportedly reached a consensus that significant progress had been made toward meeting the necessary conditions.

Secretary Hegseth also praised South Korea’s efforts to promote the OPCON transfer during a recent press conference aboard his official aircraft, calling it “an excellent achievement.” Minister Ahn also commented on Secretary Hegseth’s remarks, stating, “The OPCON transfer will be realized as soon as possible within the current administration’s term, with close cooperation between South Korea and the United States, while maintaining a strong alliance.”