South President Yoon Suk Yeol visited the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command on Tuesday and stated, “A solid alliance defense posture is needed now more than ever, and the role of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in this regard is crucial.”
In a meeting with Admiral Samuel Paparo at the Indo-Pacific Command headquarters in Honolulu, Hawaii, Yoon stated, “North Korea’s advancement in nuclear and missile capabilities, along with its ongoing provocations, are undermining the security of the Korean Peninsula and the region,” the presidential office reported.
This is the first time Yoon has visited the Indo-Pacific Command. Previous South Korean presidents, including Chun Doo Hwan in 1981 and Kim Young Sam in 1995, visited the Pacific Command. Still, Yoon is the first to see it since it was reorganized into the Indo-Pacific Command in 2018.
The Indo-Pacific Command is the largest of the six U.S. unified combatant commands (North, South, Indo-Pacific, Europe, Central, and Africa). It is responsible for the broadest area (approximately 100 million square miles, 52% of the Earth’s total surface). It plays a critical role in the security of the Korean Peninsula, including commanding the U.S. Forces Korea.
Yoon awarded Paparo the Tongil Medal of the Order of National Security Merit. The Korean government awarded Paparo the medal for strengthening the alliance’s defense posture during his three-year tenure as the Pacific Fleet Commander.
Afterward, Yoon and Paparo discussed major security issues on the Korean Peninsula and the region before moving to the operations center to listen to the Indo-Pacific Command’s current operations. Yoon expressed his gratitude for the Command’s efforts to maintain the alliance defense posture on the Korean Peninsula and emphasized the need for closer cooperation between South Korean and U.S. military authorities.
Yoon also encouraged the 200-plus soldiers of the Indo-Pacific Command. He said, “The fact that a sitting president is visiting the Indo-Pacific Command after 29 years is to further strengthen the U.S.-Korea alliance and the alliance defense posture amid the serious security situation on the Korean Peninsula. The dedicated efforts of the soldiers are the real power that leads the U.S.-Korea alliance and international solidarity.”
Several high-ranking officials attended the event, including Admiral Samuel Paparo, Indo-Pacific Commander, U.S. Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg, U.S. Forces Korea Commander Paul LaCamera, U.S. Army Pacific Commander Charles Flynn, Pacific Air Forces Commander Kevin Schneider, Pacific Fleet Commander Steven Koehler, and Marine Forces Pacific Commander William Jurney.
On the South Korean side, attendees included Cho Tae Yul, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Jang Ho Jin, Chief of the National Security Office; Kang Ho Phil, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Cho Hyun Dong, Ambassador to the U.S.; Lee Seo Young, Consul General in Honolulu; Kim Tae Hyo, First Deputy Director of the National Security Office; Lee Do Woon, Senior Secretary for Public Relations; and Choi Byung Ok, Defense Secretary.
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