Defense chiefs of S. Korea, U.S. to hold talks in Philippines ahead of ASEAN meeting

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SEOUL, Oct. 27 (Yonhap) -- Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will hold their first bilateral talks in the Philippines this week ahead of a ministerial meeting led by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a source familiar with the matter said Tuesday.

Kang and Hegseth are expected to meet one-on-one on Wednesday, a day ahead of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting (ADMM) Plus plenary in Cebu, according to the source. It will mark their first sit-down since Kang assumed office in September.

Kang is scheduled to depart for Cebu on Tuesday to attend the high-level regional security dialogue and hold a series of bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the participating countries, the defense ministry said in a release.

Kang's upcoming talks with Hegseth come as the allies face a host of pending defense and alliance issues to work out, particularly Seoul's efforts to retake wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington.

The Lee Jae Myung administration seeks to regain wartime OPCON before its five-year term ends in 2030, or even earlier. Washington, however, has expressed reservations about a rushed handover driven by political timelines rather than military readiness.

This composite photo, created using an image released by AFP, shows Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul (L) and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

It remains to be seen whether their meeting in Cebu will set the stage for progress on the OPCON transition ahead of their expected meeting at the annual Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) in Washington in December.

Seoul wants to finalize the second phase of a three-stage "conditions-based" OPCON transition plan agreed upon with Washington and announce a target year for the handover at this year's SCM.

At the ADMM Plus plenary session, Kang will send out a message highlighting the illegitimate nature of North Korea's recent land mine provocation near the inter-Korean border and call for an urgent need to resume dialogue, according to the source.

The Sept. 21 lane mine blast on the southern side of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) left three South Korean troops injured, two of them severely. South Korea has blamed the North for the incident after determining that a North Korean antipersonnel mine was the cause of the explosion.

At the plenary, Kang will also underscore the importance of international cooperation to ensure regional peace and present substantive measures to expand defense ties between South Korea and ASEAN nations, the ministry said.

He will detail Seoul's efforts to promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and call for support from the participating countries.

The ADMM Plus is a key dialogue platform bringing together the 11 ASEAN member states and regional partners, including the United States, China and Japan.

It is part of a series of annual high-level ASEAN security forums, hosted this year by the Philippines as the rotating chair.

elly@yna.co.kr (END)

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Defense chiefs of S. Korea, U.S. to hold talks in Philippines ahead of ASEAN meeting

这将使谷歌能够向您展示与您的搜索匹配或相关的韩联社新闻文章。

首尔，10月27日（韩联社）——一位知情人士周二表示，韩国国防部长康信哲和美国国防部长皮特·赫格塞斯将于本周在菲律宾举行首次双边会谈，为东盟部长级会议做准备。

据消息人士透露，康和赫格塞斯预计将于周三举行一对一会晤，会晤时间比在宿务举行的东盟防长扩大会议（ADMM Plus）全体会议提前一天。这将是康自9月就任以来两人的首次会面。

国防部在一份声明中表示，康定洙将于周二启程前往宿务，出席高级别区域安全对话，并与参会国家的对口官员举行一系列双边会晤。

康正与赫格塞斯即将举行会谈，此时盟国正面临一系列悬而未决的国防和联盟问题需要解决，特别是首尔为从华盛顿手中夺回战时作战控制权（OPCON）所做的努力。

李在明政府力求在2030年五年任期结束前，甚至更早，重新夺回战时作战指挥权。然而，华盛顿方面对这种出于政治考量而非军事准备而仓促交接权力的做法表示担忧。

这张合成照片由法新社发布的照片​​合成，照片中是韩国国防部长康信哲（左）和美国国防部长皮特·赫格塞斯。（照片不得出售）（韩联社）

他们在宿务的会晤是否会为他们在 12 月于华盛顿举行的年度安全磋商会议 (SCM) 上的会晤奠定基础，从而推动作战指挥权的移交，还有待观察。

首尔希望在今年的SCM会议上完成与华盛顿商定的三阶段“基于条件”的OPCON过渡计划的第二阶段，并宣布交接的目标年份。

据消息人士透露，康将出席东盟防长扩大会议全体会议，并发表讲话，强调朝鲜最近在朝韩边境附近埋设地雷挑衅行为的非法性，呼吁迫切需要恢复对话。

9月21日，朝韩军事分界线南侧发生一起地雷爆炸事件，造成三名韩国士兵受伤，其中两人伤势严重。韩国方面认定爆炸是由朝鲜埋设的杀伤人员地雷引起的，并指责朝鲜应对此次事件负责。

韩国国防部表示，康京和将在全体会议上强调国际合作对于确保地区和平的重要性，并提出扩大韩国与东盟国家防务关系的实质性措施。

他将详细介绍首尔为促进朝鲜半岛和平与稳定所做的努力，并呼吁与会各国提供支持。

东盟防长扩大会议是一个重要的对话平台，汇集了东盟11个成员国和包括美国、中国和日本在内的区域伙伴。

这是东盟年度高级别安全论坛系列活动的一部分，今年由菲律宾作为轮值主席国主办。

elly@yna.co.kr（完）

（头条）消息人士称，韩国和美国同意在中期选举后举行关键防务会谈。

（导语）五角大楼称，对韩美联合军演的调整不会降低训练目标。

（导语）美国在关于作战指挥权移交给韩国的辩论中，援引不断变化的“威胁环境”作为论据。

（第二段）李说，战时作战控制权必须尽早夺回。

国防部长表示，韩国对驻韩美军作战指挥官的言论表示关切。

韩国和美国国防部长将在东盟会议前夕于菲律宾举行会谈