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US President Joe Biden and his South Korean counterpart Yoon Suk-yeol announced a key new deal from the White House, which aims to deter North Korean aggression and China’s growing influence in the region.
With our correspondent Cristóbal Vásquez and AFP
The agreement between the United States and South Korea, called the “Washington Declaration”, is a set of new steps to promote cooperation between the two countries in terms of military training, information exchange and movement of strategic assets in the face of a recent series missile launches from North Korea.
Nuclear threat and deterrence
The military deal also includes a new commitment by the United States to deploy a nuclear-armed submarine to South Korea for the first time since the early 1980s.
However, Joe Biden administration officials have made it clear that the submarine will not be permanently stationed and that there are “no plans” to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on the Korean peninsula. “This is about extending deterrence and this includes the nuclear threat to deter the use of these,” Biden said.
In a press conference, both leaders multiplied the warnings against their neighbor to the north, and emphasized their means of deterrence and their “unbreakable alliance”, forged “in times of war and which prospered in times of peace”, according to the president. US.
“A North Korean nuclear strike against the United States or its allies or partners is unacceptable and will lead to the end of any regime that takes such action,” Biden warned. “Our two countries have agreed to immediate bilateral presidential consultations in the event of a North Korean nuclear attack and vow to respond swiftly, overwhelmingly and decisively using the full force of the alliance, including US nuclear weapons,” Yoon Suk-yeol said. .
Chinese Warnings
China warned the United States and South Korea on Thursday not to provoke “a confrontation” with North Korea. “All parties should face the crux of the (Korean) peninsula issue and play a constructive role in promoting a peaceful settlement of the issue,” diplomatic spokeswoman Mao Ning said.
In this sense, the official urged Washington and Seoul to avoid “deliberately stirring up tensions, provoking a confrontation and making threats.”
The Chinese spokeswoman said the US actions “aggravate tensions on the peninsula, undermine regional peace and stability, and go against the goal of denuclearization of the peninsula.”
