S. Korea, U.S. to hold regular defense talks next week

Defense 10:38 September 23, 2021

SEOUL, Sept. 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States will hold biannual defense talks in Seoul next week to discuss regional security situations and pending alliance issues, the defense ministry said Thursday.

During the 20th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD), which will kick off Monday for a two-day run, the two sides will discuss "major pending security issues," such as the assessment of the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and the policy coordination on North Korea, according to the ministry.

The meeting comes days after President Moon Jae-in proposed that the two Koreas and the U.S. declare a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War during a speech at the United Nations.

U.S. Department of Defense spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday Washington is "open to discussing the possibility of an end of war declaration" as it seeks to engage with the reclusive North.

Also on the table during the upcoming meeting will be the conditions-based transition of wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean troops from Washington to Seoul and ways to strengthen defense cooperation between the two countries, the ministry said.

Deputy Defense Minister Kim Man-ki and Siddharth Mohandas, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia, will represent South Korea and the U.S., respectively.

Launched in 2011, KIDD is a comprehensive defense forum between Seoul and Washington that usually meets twice a year. The last session took place in Washington in May.