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Defense chiefs of Korea, U.S. to hold annual security talks

Published: 27 Oct. 2025, 09:04

This composite photo shows a file photo of Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back, left, and an AP photo of U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. [YONHAP]

The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States will hold their annual security talks in Seoul early next month to discuss a range of alliance issues, such as their policy coordination on North Korea and combined defense posture, Seoul's Defense Ministry said Monday.

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will meet for the 57th Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) in Seoul on Nov. 4, in what would mark their first in-person talks, according to the ministry.

The ministry outlined policy coordination on North Korea, combined defense posture, extended deterrence as well as naval maintenance, repair and overhaul as some key agendas set to be discussed in the bilateral defense talks.

"Both sides plan to discuss overall pending issues to advance the alliance in a future-oriented and mutually beneficial direction to respond to the changing security environment and threats," the ministry said in a release.

In a separate release, the Pentagon also announced that Hegseth will co-chair the upcoming SCM and "applaud Seoul's willingness to step up on defense spending and assume greater responsibility for the alliance's deterrence and defense."

Korea is the last leg of his Asia swing that will also take him to Hawaii, Japan, Malaysia and Vietnam — a trip that the Pentagon said is aimed at strengthening defense relations and reaffirming America's commitment to "peace through strength and a balance of power in the region."

"Under Secretary Hegseth's clear and strong leadership, the Department [of War] recognizes the importance of the focus on the Indo-Pacific and the need to ensure peace through strength together with our allies and partners," the department said in the release. "The Secretary will emphasize these themes throughout his trip."

This year's meeting comes as the decades-long Korea-U.S. alliance faces a changing security environment amid speculations over a possible readjustment in the role and scope of the U.S. Forces Korea in the face of an increasingly assertive China.

It also comes as Korea has vowed to regain wartime operational command from Washington within President Lee Jae Myung's five-year term.

On the Korean Peninsula, the meeting comes as North Korea continues to deepen its military alignment with Russia while advancing its nuclear and missile weapons, disclosing the new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile during a major military parade earlier this month.

Yonhap