Page 87 - 2020 Defence White Paper

Appendix
15

Joint Communiqué of the 52nd ROK–US Security
Consultative Meeting

Washington D.C., October 14, 2020
1. The 52nd United States (US)–Republic of Korea (ROK) Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) was
held in Washington, D.C., on October 14, 2020. US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and ROK Minister
of National Defense Suh Wook led their respective delegations, which included senior defense and
foreign affairs officials. On October 13, 2020, US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark
Milley, and ROK Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Won In-choul, presided over the 45th US–
ROK Military Committee Meeting (MCM).

2. The Secretary and the Minister noted that the SCM has played a pivotal role in the development of
the US–ROK Alliance. The two leaders recognized that the SCM would continue to be a cornerstone
venue to discuss and affirm national commitments. Both sides pledged to continue to develop the
Alliance—the linchpin of peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia—in a
mutually reinforcing and future-oriented manner. The Secretary and the Minister also noted that future
defense cooperation, mutual trust, and shared values such as freedom, democracy, human rights, and
the rule of law—on which the relationship is built—would be further enhanced through continued
commitment to the objectives set forth in the Joint Study for the Future Defense Vision of the ROK–US
Alliance.

3. The Secretary and the Minister reviewed the current security environment on the Korean Peninsula
and in the region and discussed cooperative measures between the two nations. The two sides
additionally had an in-depth discussion on North Korean military activities. In recognition of the significant
threat that North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs pose to international security, both sides
reaffirmed the need for close coordination and cooperation to establish a permanent peace on the
Korean Peninsula through complete denuclearization of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
(DPRK), as well as dismantlement of its ballistic missile program, consistent with multiple United Nations
Security Council Resolutions. The Secretary and the Minister urged North Korea to fulfill its commitments
under the Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity, and Reunification of the Korean Peninsula, the
Singapore Summit Joint Statement between President Donald J. Trump and Chairman Kim Jong Un,
and other relevant arrangements and agreements.

4. The Minister noted that the various measures carried out by the ROK and North Korean military
authorities for the implementation of the Panmunjom Declaration and the Comprehensive Military

Appendix