S. Korean, U.S. commanders discuss N. Korea threats, security issues

By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Yonhap) -- The top commanders of South Korea and the United
States shared their latest assessment of North Korea's military threats and a
broad range of issues concerning their alliance during their annual security
talks on Wednesday.
The Military Committee Meeting (MCM) is a prelude to the Security Consultative
Meeting (SCM) scheduled for Thursday between the defense ministers of the
decades-long allies in Seoul.
A senior South Korean official said the latest assessment of North Korea's
military moves would be high on agenda during the meeting between South Korean
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Lee Sang-eui and his American counterpart,
Adm. Michael Mullen.
"The allies will review their combat readiness and discuss practical ways to
enhance their alliance to counter the threat," the defense official said before
attending the meeting in Seoul.
He declined to be identified as he was not allowed to speak on the meeting that
had yet to take place. A classified report detailing the movements of the North
Korean army was spotted in the conference room at the Ministry of National
Defense.
South Korea and the U.S., which fought together in the 1950-53 Korean War,
alternately host the talks each year.
This year's meeting comes as North Korea sends mixed signals to the outside world
by appearing willing to engage in dialogue while resuming missile testing and
reviving bellicose rhetoric.
The U.S., which has 28,500 troops in South Korea, is also expected to discuss
with the Asian ally ways to shore up its operations in Afghanistan during the
MCM.
Flying to Japan, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he was "prepared to
discuss a broad range of needs in Afghanistan" when he meets his South Korean
counterpart, Kim Tae-young.
"I'm not going to make any asks of anybody on this trip. But we do have a common
interest in moving forward in Afghanistan," he said. South Korean media have
speculated for weeks that Washington may ask Seoul to send combat troops to
Afghanistan.
South Korea withdrew more than 200 military medics and engineers from Afghanistan
in 2007 after dozens of South Korean Christian missionaries were held captive
there. Two were killed.
South Korea currently has medical civilians at a U.S. base in Afghanistan and
plans to increase the number to 85 by year's end.
The security meetings come ahead of a four-nation Asian trip by U.S. President
Barack Obama next month. Obama will be in Seoul in mid-November, according to the
South Korean government.
The MCM will be an opportunity to follow up on the agreement between Obama and
his South Korean counterpart, Lee Myung-bak, Brig. Gen. Wee Seung-ho said in a
briefing earlier this week.
"It is a great, great opportunity for us to continue to strengthen our
relationship," Mullen said at the beginning of the meeting that took place mostly
behind closed doors.
"I look forward to the discussions today and the SCM tomorrow," he said.
Following the May 25 nuclear test by North Korea, the U.S. promised to bolster
its measures to defend South Korea under the concept of "extended deterrence."
The allies remain technically at war with North Korea as the Korean War ended in
a truce rather than a peace treaty. Gates arrived in Seoul on Wednesday and was
to speak to troops at a U.S. garrison based in the South Korean capital.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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