The United States (US), South Korea, and Japan “strongly condemned” the recent “unlawful” ballistic missile launches by North Korea and urged Pyongyang to return to negotiations in a joint statement on Wednesday.
In a meeting with her South Korean and Japanese counterparts, Cho Hyun-dong and Mori Takeo in Seoul, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman reaffirmed Washington’s “steadfast” commitment toward the defence of Seoul and Tokyo, including “extended deterrence.” The three officials called on North Korea to “immediately cease actions that violate international law, escalate tensions, destabilise the region, or endanger global peace and security, and instead engage in dialogue toward the complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.”
Republic of Korea First Vice Foreign Minister Cho, Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Mori, and I held a very productive trilateral meeting in Seoul. We discussed regional and global security and prosperity. pic.twitter.com/G9PgMGxfkW
— Wendy R. Sherman (@DeputySecState) June 8, 2022
Sherman’s Asia summit comes after North Korea launched eight ballistic missiles in its largest single-day test on Sunday following bilateral military exercises between the US and South Korea the previous day that included an American aircraft carrier for the first time in four years. With the latest test, Pyongyang has already launched an unprecedented 31 missiles this year, including six Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs).
In response, South Korea and the US launched eight Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) into the sea on Monday to match North Korea’s provocative missile display. Furthermore, the US and Japan also conducted joint military drills on Tuesday.
In order to enhance interoperability, sustainability and readiness, 🇯🇵🇺🇸have been seizing various opportunities to steadily conduct effective bilateral exercises. Through these exercises, #MOD/#JSDF & the U.S. continue to demonstrate our commitment for the #STRONGJapanUSAlliance. https://t.co/SGqAQPHPSz
— Japan Ministry of Defense/Self-Defense Forces (@ModJapan_en) June 8, 2022
“The United States remains prepared to meet the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) without preconditions and we iterate again, we have no hostile intent toward the DPRK,” Sherman told reporters on Wednesday. She reiterated that the three countries are “fully and closely allied” on North Korea.
Sherman also held separate meetings with South Korean Minister of Unification Kwon Young-se and Vice Minister of Unification Kim Ki-woong on Wednesday to stress the importance of “close cooperation” between the US, South Korea and Japan in order to “achieve the complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.” They denounced North Korea’s ballistic missile launches as a violation of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions and for destabilising the region at large.
.@USForcesKorea & Republic of Korea militaries conducted a combined live-fire exercise this morning.
— U.S. Forces Korea (@USForcesKorea) June 6, 2022
This exercise used 1 @USArmy missile and 7 @ROK_Army missiles.
Details --> https://t.co/UUe45BCl4z@ROK_MND | @INDOPACOM | @UN_Command | #탄도미사일 pic.twitter.com/4wGnrTjOBu
The US and South Korea also expressed concern about the COVID-19 situation in North Korea. Last week, North Korea admitted that more than 4.2 million of its 25 million population were suffering from fever. However, it has not responded to multiple and repeated attempts from the US and South Korea to assist with humanitarian and medical aid.
Additionally, in a one-on-one meeting, Sherman and Mori talked about “deepening US-Japan economic cooperation, including plans for a ministerial-level Economic Policy Consultative Committee (EPCC) meeting in July, and the importance of strengthening supply chain resiliency in high-tech sectors.”
In a press statement from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the US and Japan reaffirmed to “swiftly strengthen the deterrence and response capabilities of the Japan-US Alliance” as discussed during President Joe Biden’s visit to Japan last month. Sherman and Mori also discussed enforcing stronger sanctions on Russia for invading Ukraine and calling for an end to the war immediately, and various issues related to China.
I traveled to the Republic of Korea and Japan last month for my first trip to Asia as president. The alliances between our nations are the cornerstone of a free and open Indo-Pacific – and I look forward to continuing to work together to tackle the shared challenges we face. pic.twitter.com/g6In1yfSaF
— President Biden (@POTUS) June 7, 2022
Last month, Biden visited South Korea to meet with the newly-elected President Yoon Suk-yeol, wherein the pair vowed to “expand the scope and scale of combined military exercises and training on and around the Korean Peninsula” amid the increasing security threat from North Korea. Both leaders urged North Korea to cease its weapons of mass destruction and abide by the UNSC resolutions.
In the same week, President Biden also met with Japanese Prime Minister (PM) Fumio Kishida in Tokyo, wherein both leaders expressed support for a “calibrated diplomatic approach” toward North Korea, urging Pyongyang to return to “serious and sustained dialogue.” In response, North Korea launched three ballistic missiles during Biden’s Asia trip.
Special Representatives Sung Kim 🇺🇸 & Kim Gunn 🇰🇷 spoke by phone w/ 🇯🇵 DG Funakoshi Takehiro about the DPRK’s latest round of ballistic missile launches, coordinating a unified response to ongoing provocations that destabilize the region & violate multiple UNSC resolutions. pic.twitter.com/h6ej04pCBW
— 주한미국대사관 U.S. Embassy Seoul (@USEmbassySeoul) June 5, 2022
Moreover, senior US officials and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) believe that North Korea is preparing to conduct its seventh nuclear test in the coming days – its first since 2017. Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un is presiding over the Fifth Enlarged Plenary Meeting of the Eighth Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK). Back in April, Kim vowed to “continue to take steps to strengthen and develop” the country’s nuclear capabilities “at the highest possible speed.”
In case a nuclear test does take place then the US National Security Adviser (NSA) Jake Sullivan has promised to retaliate with a “robust response.” Similarly, Sherman has warned that the whole world “will respond in a strong and clear manner.”
Against this backdrop, Russia and China vetoed the US-led UNSC resolution to impose new sanctions on North Korea. Chinese UN Ambassador Zhang Jun blamed the “flip-flop of US policies” and a disregard for North Korea’s “reasonable concerns,” further accusing Washington of returning to its “old path” and “chanting empty slogans for dialogue.”
"Now is the moment for a grand humanitarian gesture. The US, Japan, and South Korea should make a direct but private approach to Pyongyang, offering to provide whatever the North requires to prevent a medical catastrophe." -- @Doug_Bandow #CatoFP https://t.co/D6Jz5O2Fx0
— Cato Foreign Policy (@CatoFP) June 3, 2022
In a similar vein, Russian Deputy UN Ambassador Anna Evstigneeva stressed that new sanctions against Pyongyang “would be a dead end.” “Anyone who is seriously addressing the North Korean problem has long understood that it’s futile to expect Pyongyang to unconditionally disarm under the threat of a spiral of sanctions,” she added.
Likewise, North Korean UN Ambassador Kim Song called the resolution “illegal,” saying that modernising the country’s military is essential to guard North Korea against the “direct threat” of the US, which has allegedly made no move “to abandon its hostile policy.”