Page 366 - 2018 Defense White Paper

Appendix 13
Joint Communiqué of the 49 th

ROK–U.S. Security Consultative Meeting

Seoul, October 28, 2017

1. The 49 Republic of Korea (ROK) and United States (U.S.) Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) was held
th
in Seoul on October 28, 2017. ROK Minister of National Defense Song Young-moo and U.S. Secretary of
Defense James Mattis led their respective delegations, which included senior defense and foreign affairs
officials. On October 27, 2017, the Chairman of the ROK Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Jeong Kyeong-doo,
nd
and the U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joseph F. Dunford Jr., presided over the 42
ROK-U.S. Military Committee Meeting (MCM).

2. The Minister and the Secretary noted that the ROK-U.S. partnership—which is built on mutual trust as
well as shared values of freedom, democracy, human rights, and rule of law— has never been stronger.
The two sides will make an effort to develop the Alliance in a mutually reinforcing and future-oriented

manner to respond effectively to common security threats. The Minister and the Secretary noted the
Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) advances Alliance objectives by providing a high-level
policy venue to coordinate between the ROK and the United States. In addition, they confirmed the
necessity of strengthening close communication and decision-making mechanisms to respond most
effectively to changes in the security environment and to advance Alliance priorities.

3. The Minister and the Secretary strongly condemned North Korea’s unprecedented level of provocative
behavior—including the recent sixth nuclear test and multiple launches of ballistic missiles—as reckless,
disruptive, and clear violations of numerous United Nations (UN) Security Council resolutions. The Minister
and the Secretary reiterated that North Korea’s UN Security Council-proscribed nuclear and ballistic missile
programs, as well as its proliferation activities, are profound challenges to the international community
and pose an increasingly serious threat to the stability of the Korean Peninsula, and the region, as well as
to global security and the global nonproliferation regime. The Minister and the Secretary strongly urged
North Korea to fulfill its commitments under the September 19, 2005, Joint Statement of the Six-Party
Talks and to abide by its obligations under UN Security Council resolutions 1718, 1874, 2087, 2094, 2270,

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