The United States will send a nuclear submarine to South Korea to boost deterrence capabilities in the face of North Korea, a senior U.S. official announced Wednesday.
According to AFP, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the deployment of the nuclear-capable ballistic missile submarine would be announced within the framework of the “Washington Declaration” endorsed by US President Joe Biden and his South Korean counterpart. Yoon Seok Yeol is currently visiting America.
Notably, Biden received his South Korean counterpart Yoon Chok Yeol on Tuesday, the first day of a state visit to Washington aimed at strengthening the alliance between the two countries.
Yun, who is on a six-day visit to the US, visited NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in suburban Washington with US Vice President Kamala Harris.
The highlight of the state visit will be a meeting at the White House on Wednesday, followed by a press conference and dinner.
It is the second state visit by a foreign leader under Biden, following French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit last December.
White House national security adviser Jack Sullivan told reporters on Monday that the two leaders have had four “exchanges” since Yun took office a year ago and were able to develop a “relationship.”
The alliance “extends beyond the Korean Peninsula and must be a force for good in the Asia-Pacific region and around the world,” he said, noting that Yoon was the first South Korean leader to attend a NATO summit.
The U.S. security umbrella is at the center of Yun’s talks as the region faces a new record for North Korea’s ballistic missile launches this year, AFP reported.
Biden will try to reassure his guest about “extended deterrence,” promising concrete decisions on this issue and other files, “cooperation in cyberspace, climate, investment and strengthening relationships between us. People.”
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