The defense chiefs of South Korea and Japan met in Seoul on Sunday and agreed to further strengthen defense exchange and cooperation, including in advanced science and technology such as artificial intelligence, exchanges between their air forces' aerobatic teams, and naval search-and-rescue training.
Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi held bilateral talks at the Ministry of National Defense headquarters in Seoul and agreed on these matters, the ministry said in a joint press statement.
In the joint statement, the two sides said, "The two ministers agreed to pursue Korea-Japan discussions on cooperation in advanced science and technology fields such as AI, and to continue exchange and cooperation between the two countries' aerobatic teams (the Black Eagles and the Blue Impulse) on the occasion of stopovers in Japan by the Air Force's Black Eagles, as well as to further develop search-and-rescue training in preparation for maritime accident situations."
They added, "The two ministers will strengthen communication and efforts for the development of stable and future-oriented Korea-Japan defense exchange and cooperation through enhanced mutual understanding and trust."
On Jan. 28, the Korean aerobatic team Black Eagles made its first stopover at the Japan Air Self-Defense Force's Naha base in Okinawa Prefecture for refueling. The exchange between the two countries' aerobatic team pilots is planned to continue going forward rather than remaining a one-off event.
The two sides also formed a consensus on strengthening regularized defense exchange and cooperation in the naval sector, including developing the Korea-Japan naval search-and-rescue exercise (SAREX) conducted early this month for the first time in nine years since 2017.
The two ministers stressed, "We agreed to continue cooperation to maintain regional peace and stability amid a grave security environment," adding, "We reaffirmed our commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the establishment of lasting peace, and agreed to continue Korea-Japan and Korea-U.S.-Japan coordination."
The issue of concluding a Korea-Japan Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) was reportedly not included on the official agenda at the talks. Japan has strongly demanded the conclusion of an ACSA with Korea.
The talks between Minister Ahn and Defense Minister Koizumi were the sixth between them. It marked the first visit to Korea by a Japanese defense minister for bilateral ministerial talks in 11 years since 2015. Koizumi arrived in Korea the previous day on a two-day schedule. The visit is part of shuttle defense diplomacy between the two countries' defense ministers, following Minister Ahn's visit to Japan in January.
Koizumi is also expected to meet with Foreign Minister Cho Hyun on Sunday afternoon.
