The United States, Japan, and South Korea held a rare trilateral military meeting on Tuesday, July 12, 2023, in Hawaii. The meeting came as North Korea launched its twelfth missile this year, a short-range ballistic missile that flew about 250 kilometers.
The trilateral meeting was led by U.S. General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, South Korean General Won In-choul, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Japanese General Yamazaki Akira, chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. The three leaders discussed the recent missile launch by North Korea and ways to strengthen their trilateral security cooperation.
In a statement after the meeting, General Milley said that the three countries “reaffirmed our ironclad commitment to the defense of our respective nations and to the security of the Indo-Pacific region.” He added that the meeting “was a significant opportunity to coordinate our efforts to deter and respond to any threat from North Korea.”
The trilateral meeting was the first since March 2022. It comes at a time of heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula, as North Korea has been conducting a series of missile tests in recent months. The tests have raised concerns that North Korea is preparing to resume nuclear testing.
The trilateral meeting is a sign of the close security cooperation between the United States, Japan, and South Korea. The three countries are working together to deter North Korea from further provocations and to ensure the security of the region.
