Kim Jong Un’s government in Pyongyang has conducted a series of missile tests in recent days. South Korea’s military said an intercontinental ballistic missile test on Thursday may have ended in failure. Japan called the launch “outrageous and absolutely intolerable”. According to a joint statement released by the US Department of Defense, during his meeting with South Korean Defense Minister Lee Yong-sup, Austin said: “Any nuclear attack against the United States or its allies and partners, including of the use of non-strategic nuclear weapons, is unacceptable and will lead to the end of the Kim regime.” Similar language was included in the US National Defense Strategy, which was released last week. That document said in part: “Our North Korea strategy recognizes the threat posed by its nuclear, chemical, missile and conventional capabilities, and in particular the need to make clear to the Kim regime the dire consequences of using nuclear weapons… It’s not a scenario in which the Kim regime could use nuclear weapons and survive.” Austin, a retired US Army general and the first African-American secretary of defense, spoke to reporters at the Pentagon alongside Lee. “Secretary Lee and I had a great conversation today,” Austin said. “We talked about how the PRC [North Korea] has continued provocations and destabilizing actions, and in this moment of heightened tension, our alliance is ironclad. “The United States remains fully committed to defense [of South Korea]. Our comprehensive deterrence commitment is unwavering and includes a full range of our nuclear and conventional and missile defense capabilities.” He said the two countries plan to return to large-scale military exercises on the peninsula. The Biden administration took such steps after four years in which Donald Trump placed an unprecedented emphasis on relations between Seoul and Washington, saying he wanted South Korea to pay for US military aid from the 1950-53 Korean War. . Trump, whose cavalier handling of nuclear policy issues has been widely reported, has met repeatedly with Kim, holding high-profile summits that yielded little tangible benefit. At the Pentagon, Austin said the US was “committed to continuing [the Biden administration’s] efforts to strengthen comprehensive deterrence and to ensure that this alliance continues to enhance security and stability on the Korean Peninsula and across the Indo-Pacific.”
