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South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam and Vice Defense Minister Suh Choo-suk

South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense announced on Jan. 15 that senior diplomats and defense officials from South Korea and the US will be meeting for the second round of the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG), which will be held in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 17. The meeting will be attended by First Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam and Vice Defense Minister Suh Choo-suk from South Korea and by Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Shannon and Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy David Trachtenberg from the US.

During the Foreign and Defense Ministers’ Meeting (2+2) in Oct. 2016, South Korea and the US agreed to set up the EDSCG, to be led by vice minister-level officials from the two countries, and the first meeting was held that December. Extended deterrence is the doctrine by which the US provides the same level of deterrence as the US mainland using the nuclear umbrella, missile defense and conventional weapons.

“This meeting was organized in line with the agreement reached during the South Korea-US summit in June 2017 for the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group to meet regularly and the agreement reached during the 49th South Korea-US Security Consultative Meeting on Oct. 28 of the same year to hold the meeting early. During this meeting, we are planning to discuss comprehensive deterrence measures for North Korea, including extended deterrence,” the Defense Ministry announced.

“There will be a discussion about comprehensive ways to deter North Korea that can support a diplomatic and peaceful solution to the North Korean nuclear issue,” the Foreign Ministry said.

By Park Byong-su, senior staff writer and Kim Ji-eun, staff reporter

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