South Korea and the United States will hold a high-level defense meeting in Washington next week, where the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) is expected to be a central agenda item.
The Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD), a high-level consultative body between the defense authorities of the two countries, will convene in the United States next week.
The meeting is expected to address key issues including the OPCON transfer, which the Lee Jae-myung administration is pursuing as a state task to complete within its term, as well as cooperation measures related to the Strait of Hormuz following the recent war in Iran.
The Ministry of National Defense announced Monday that the 28th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue will be held in Washington, D.C., on July 12-13.
The KIDD was launched in 2011 as a high-level consultative body to facilitate timely and effective security consultations between South Korea and the United States. It has been held one to two times per year, alternating between the two countries.
This meeting marks roughly eight months since the previous session held in Seoul last September.
Kim Hong-chul, director-general for defense policy at South Korea's Ministry of National Defense, and John Noh, U.S. acting assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs, will serve as the heads of their respective delegations. Senior officials from both countries' defense and foreign affairs sectors will also participate.
"We plan to discuss a range of alliance security issues, including the OPCON transfer and the combined defense posture, so that the Korea-U.S. alliance can develop in a future-oriented and mutually beneficial manner," the ministry said.
The OPCON transfer, which the Lee Jae-myung administration is pursuing as a state task, has been included as an official agenda item for this meeting.
The government plans to reach an agreement on a target year for the OPCON transfer at the Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) this fall, which will be attended by the defense chiefs of both countries. Seoul intends to finalize related consultations at this week's meeting, which serves as preparation for the SCM.
Discussions are also expected on issues related to the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively been blockaded amid the U.S. war against Iran.
In addition, the two sides are expected to discuss other alliance issues, including a plan for the divided management of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), currently under the jurisdiction of the United Nations Command, and cooperation on the construction of nuclear-powered submarines.
