South Korean and U.S. Defense Ministers Visit JSA for First Time in 8 Years: "Alliance Defense Posture Strengthened"

Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-baek and U.S. Secretary of War (Defense) Pete Hegseth visited the Joint Security Area (JSA) at Panmunjom together on November 3. Regarding the visit, Minister Ahn stated, "The very fact that the defense ministers of both countries are visiting the JSA in person sends a very powerful message."

According to the Ministry of National Defense, Ministers Ahn and Hegseth visited the JSA at Panmunjom on the afternoon of November 3. Secretary Hegseth is currently in South Korea to attend the 57th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) scheduled for November 4. It has been approximately eight years since the defense ministers of both countries last visited the JSA together, the previous occasion being in October 2017.

At around 4:30 p.m. that day, Ministers Ahn and Hegseth arrived at the U.S. military base 'Camp Bonifas' via helicopters from the Ministry of National Defense and United States Forces Korea, respectively. According to Minister Ahn, Secretary Hegseth remarked on the joint visit, saying, "It is highly significant that the ministers of both countries are meeting here at the JSA for the first time in eight years," and added, "This in itself has symbolic and declarative meaning, demonstrating the strength of the U.S.-ROK alliance and the robustness of our combined defense posture."

The two ministers received an operational briefing from the South Korean and U.S. battalion commanders of the JSA Security Battalion at the Ouellette Post (OP), the northernmost guard post in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). This OP is located just 25 meters from the Military Demarcation Line (MDL). It was also the site visited by former U.S. President Donald Trump and former President Moon Jae-in in June 2019. The ministers then toured the Panmunjom conference room.

Furthermore, Secretary Hegseth said he was "deeply impressed to see the joint search operations conducted by South Korea and the U.S. in the DMZ," and remarked, "Before coming to the JSA, I thought the dividing line was a straight line, but seeing the forests and valleys changed my perspective." Minister Ahn also conveyed that Secretary Hegseth commented on the proximity between Daeseong-dong Village on the South Korean side and the North Korean village, saying, "I didn't realize they were this close."

However, it was reported that Secretary Hegseth did not make any particular remarks regarding North Korea. Previously, during his visit to South Korea from October 29 to 30, President Trump made several overtures to arrange a summit with Kim Jong Un, Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, but the North did not respond, and the summit did not take place.

Minister Ahn explained that the two ministers also discussed the significant symbolism of the JSA as both the front line of inter-Korean relations and a place for dialogue and communication, and agreed on the importance of continued joint efforts between South Korea and the U.S. moving forward.

Meanwhile, Ministers Ahn and Hegseth are scheduled to hold the SCM at the Ministry of National Defense headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on November 4. The SCM is the highest-level annual meeting between the defense authorities of South Korea and the United States, established in 1978, and alternates between Seoul and Washington each year to discuss and coordinate key military policies. This year, discussions are expected to cover not only the transition of wartime operational control and the modernization of the U.S.-ROK alliance, but also issues related to nuclear-powered submarines, as agreed at the U.S.-ROK summit held in Gyeongju on October 29.