Joint Statement of the U.S.-Republic of Korea-and Japan Meeting at Shangri-La

U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Republic of Korea (ROK) Minister of Defense Kim Kwan Jin, and Japan Parliamentary Senior Vice Minister of Defense Shu Watanabe shared views on the regional security situation and reaffirmed the value of trilateral defense cooperation at their meeting on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue on June 2, 2012. 

The three ministers concurred that North Korea's continued provocations including its sinking of the ROK corvette CHEONAN and shelling of Yeonpyeong Island in 2010, and its missile launch in April 2012, pose a serious threat to the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula, Northeast Asia, and the world.  North Korea needs to understand that it will achieve nothing by threats or by provocations, and that such behavior will only deepen its international isolation.

The three ministers reaffirmed the April 16, 2012 Presidential Statement of the UN Security Council, demanding that North Korea comply with its obligations under UN Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874, including that it abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs.  They welcomed that the Security Council made clear its determination to take action in the event of a further North Korean launch or nuclear test.  The ministers reaffirmed that North Korea’s provocative behavior threatens all three countries and will be met with solidarity from all three countries.  They agreed to continue to reinforce trilateral policy coordination in order to deter North Korean provocations. 

The three ministers affirmed the importance of trilateral collaboration for regional peace and stability, and they decided to expand the scope of this collaboration that includes humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, maritime security, protecting the freedom of navigation, and non-proliferation.  They also decided to pursue Defense Ministerial trilateral meetings at the Shangri-La Dialogue in the future.

Pacom Commander: North Korea Remains Central Concern

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By Karen Parrish

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27, 2011 – North Korea’s challenges to Asia-Pacific security and stability were most acute in 2010, but remain a central concern for U.S. Pacific Command, Pacom’s commander said today.

North Korea’s nuclear program and military objectives are a Pacom focus, and the command’s people work within the U.S. government and with regional partners to see North Korea “change trajectory,” Navy Adm. Robert F. Willard told reporters at the Foreign Press Center here.

In March 2010, North Korean forces sank the South Korean ship Cheonan, killing 46 South Korean sailors. In November, North Korea launched an artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island, killing two South Korean marines and two civilians. In the wake of those attacks, the attitude of South Korea’s leaders and people has “fundamentally changed,” Willard said.

“There is very strong … intolerance at this point for any further provocations,” he added.

Kim Jong-un’s rise to prominence as North Korea’s likely next ruler, following his father, Kim Jong-il, may mean further provocations will come, Willard said.

“In the past, succession has come with provocation as the new leadership has attempted to establish their bona fides with the North Korean military,” the admiral said.

Kim Jong-un’s prominence during the 2010 attacks “was not lost on us,” Willard said. “The prospects that he could be somehow accountable in a next provocation [are] important to understand as well,” he added.

Kim Jong-il’s health may largely determine the timing of future attacks, the admiral noted.

“We watch North Korea closely, as you would expect us to,” Willard said. “We try to determine the succession dynamics that are ongoing, especially as we approach 2012, which the North Koreans have declared as an auspicious year for themselves and what that may portend in terms of Kim Jong-un’s leadership position.”

North Korea conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009. In January, then-Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said he believed North Korea would develop an intercontinental ballistic missile that would be a “direct threat” to the United States within five years.

Willard said members of his command watch North Korea’s nuclear developments “very carefully.”

“We are concerned … that [Kim Jong-il] will continue to promote his ballistic missile programs, as well as his weapon programs,” the admiral said. “It’s very much the subject of the discussions that are going on right now between the United States and [North Korea], and I think South Korea and [North Korea] as well.”

In response to a question on a possible U.S. sale of Global Hawk surveillance vehicles to South Korea, Willard said he has frequent discussions with South Korean officials about their capabilities and “the potential for U.S. procurement of defense articles that can service their needs.”

“There are discussions ongoing with regard to surveillance capabilities in the South, and I think the United States, as you know, is very guarded about these high-tech capabilities being provided as defense articles. So that discussion is, in fact, occurring,” the admiral said, noting the countries’ strong alliance.

“When you consider … the fact that we have 30,000 troops in the Republic of Korea and we are very, very closely aligned with the Koreans in terms of all our military capabilities, the prospects that our highly technical capabilities could ultimately be part of a foreign military sale is a consideration,” he said.

Mullen Seeks Multilateral Deterrence Against North Korea

By Donna Miles

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, July 14, 2011 – Crediting South Korean leaders for their “poise and calm” in the face of last year’s provocations from North Korea, the top U.S. military leader today warned North Korea to expect “a very strong response” to a future attack.

“The north should not mistake their restraint as a lack of resolve, nor should they interpret it as a willingness to accept continued attacks … unchallenged,” Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said during a media roundtable in the South Korean capital of Seoul.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has made clear that his country won’t tolerate more attacks like the sinking of the South Korean navy ship Cheonan in March 2010 that killed 46 sailors or the artillery strike on Yeonpyeong Island in November that killed four, including two South Korean Marines, Mullen said.

The United States and its South Korean counterparts are working with a “sense of urgency” on plans to deter more provocations, he said.

“The threat remains real,” the chairman told reporters. “North Korea shows no sign of relenting in pursuit of its nuclear capabilities, and I am not convinced that they will not provoke again.

“The only thing that is predictable about North Korea is their unpredictability,” he added.

The chairman, in Seoul for the U.S. Forces Korea change-of-command ceremony, emphasized the United States’ commitment to South Korea and the strength of the South Korean-U.S alliance.

“This alliance is firm,” he said. “There may have been a change of command here today, but nothing has changed about the United States’ military resolve and readiness.”

But Mullen, who arrived in South Korea after visiting China, said standing up to North Korea isn’t the responsibility of just South Korea and the United States. He emphasized the need for strong, multilateral cooperation to deter North Korean aggression, calling specifically on China and Japan to become leaders in that effort.

“I believe a measured, multilateral approach is needed, not just now, but … for a long time into the future,” he said. “We all stand to gain from a stable peninsula.”

Mullen said his meetings here focused on maintaining that readiness. “We reaffirmed a long-term view that ensures what we do in the near term is guided by the Strategic Alliance 2015 framework and also on full-spectrum capabilities,” he said.

The Strategic Alliance 2015 agreement provides a set of initiatives designed to shape the U.S.-South Korean alliance for the future, including the transfer of wartime operational control of South Korean forces to South Korea.

Despite budgetary challenges, Mullen said, the United States will maintain its commitments to South Korea and its other friends and allies throughout Asia and the Pacific.

“These budget times will require difficult decisions, but I am very comfortable that we will stay committed to these alliances and that we will continue to pursue capabilities and relationships [that] focus on a stable Pacific and Asia,” he said.

“This is a vital region and we have been here a long time,” the chairman added. “We will continue to be here for a long time.”

Thurman Wants to Bolster U.S.-South Korean Ties

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 28, 2011 – Army Gen. James D. Thurman told the Senate Armed Services Committee that he would work to strengthen the U.S.-South Korea alliance amid provocations and uncertainties from North Korea.

Thurman testified today as part of his confirmation hearing to become the top allied commander in South Korea.

Thurman currently leads U.S. Army Forces Command. If confirmed, he will succeed Army Gen. Walter Sharp as the commander of United Nations Command, Combined Forces Command and commander of U.S. Forces, Korea.

Over the last year two notable provocations have increased tensions between North and South Korea. The North sank the South Korean naval vessel Cheonan, killing 46 South Korean sailors in March 2010. In November, a North Korean artillery barrage that targeted the island of Yeongpyeong killed two civilians and two South Korean marines.

Officials said the provocations were likely caused by Kim Jong-un, the youngest son of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, trying to cement his claim as the successor to his father.

North Korea’s economy is in shambles and the country is a pariah in the world. Yet it remains dangerous. In prepared testimony, Thurman noted that North Korea retains the fourth-largest military in the world, with more than 1 million active duty troops and 5 million reservists.

More than 70 percent of North Korea’s military forces are arrayed along the De-militarized Zone. North Korea has stationed up to 250 long-range artillery guns that could strike the South Korean capital of Seoul -- one of the world’s great metropolitan cities with almost 25 million people.

Yet, North Korea’s military capability is declining. North Korean tanks are no match for U.S. and South Korean weapons systems, said Thurman, noting that North Korea has more than 1,700 aging aircraft, 800 naval vessels and 13,000 artillery systems.

Nonetheless, though North Korea’s weaponry may suffer from neglect and its troops may be poorly trained, there are many of them, and sheer numbers, too, can provide a military capability, the general said.

The North Korean nuclear program also poses a grave concern on the peninsula, Thurman said. North Korea continues to develop its nuclear capabilities, revealing earlier this year that it has an operational uranium enrichment facility. The North Korean regime has worked to proliferate nuclear and missile technology to Iran, Syria and others. Thurman said that he will work to see if he can strengthen the proliferation security initiative on the peninsula.

Thurman said there are both challenges and opportunities on the Korean peninsula.

“Recognizing that a strong United States-Republic of Korea alliance is one of the most important factors for maintaining peace and security on the peninsula and in the region at large, I will -- if confirmed -- continue the work of my predecessors directed at sustaining strong ties with our Korean partner,” he said.

Commander, Naval Forces Korea Sailors Honor Lost ROK Sailors

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Brianna K. Dandridge, Commander, Naval Forces Korea Public Affairs

SEOUL, Republic of Korea (NNS) -- Sailors from Commander, Naval Forces Korea and Republic of Korea (ROK) navies honored Sailors lost on ROKN ship Cheonan (PCC-772) during a memorial and bell ringing ceremony April 20.

Cheonan sank March 26, 2010, in the Yellow Sea after being struck by a torpedo. The lives of 46 sailors onboard were lost along with Warrant Officer Han Jun-ho who died during subsequent rescue operations.

"We are here to honor and remember their service to the sea," said Rear Admiral Pete Gumataotao, Commander, Naval Forces Korea. "As we in the United States Navy will never forget the Sailors of USS Cole and USS Stark, we will never forget the Sailors of Cheonan."

The ceremony began with a brief invocation and speech by Lt. Chong-wook Kim, flag lieutenant to Gumataotao.

Kim served aboard Cheonan as weapons control officer in 2005 and expressed condolences for the 46 sailors, who went down with Cheonan.

"I was in deep grief before her shortly, tried to recollect the past time I had spent with her, and buried those beautiful memories within my heart forever," said Kim.

Taps were played and two bells were rung during the ceremony, to honor each of the servicemen who lost their lives while serving on Cheonan.

"Those who gave their self in service of their country will never be forgotten," said Gumataotao.

Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Korea (CNFK) is the regional commander for the U.S. Navy in the Republic of Korea (ROK) and provides expertise on naval matters to area military commanders, including the Commander for the United Nations Command; the Republic of Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command; and Commander, U.S. Forces Korea. CNFK also serves as liaison to the ROK Navy and the Combined Forces Commander staff in armistice and in wartime to Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet; based in Yokosuka, Japan.

U.S., South Korea Prepare Defense Against North’s Provocations

By Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 12, 2011 – The South Korean and U.S. militaries are well prepared to defend South Korea should North Korean provocations continue, the top U.S. military commander posted in the region told Congress today.

Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee here, Army Gen. Walter “Skip” Sharp, commander for United Nations Command, Combined Forces Command and U.S. Forces Korea, said South Korean and U.S. military leaders have been working to hone their defenses and are ready to effectively respond to an array of North Korean provocations.

“We have been working on a whole range of possible provocations from North Korea,” Sharp said. If North Korea should stage an act of provocation or aggression, he said, then South Korea “will immediately strike back in a proportionate self-defense manner. I do believe we are prepared.”

Sharp cited North Korea’s sinking of the South Korean navy frigate Cheonan in March 2010 that killed 48 sailors, and the November artillery barrage on Yeonpyeong Island from North Korea that killed two South Korean service members and wounded others, including some civilians.

These attacks, along with North Korea’s continuing development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile capabilities have strengthened the South Korean-U.S. alliance, Sharp said. The alliance, he emphasized, is fully prepared to deter North Korean aggression.

The South Korea-U.S. alliance “continues to deter a North Korea that threatens both regional and global peace and security,” the general said. “Maintaining this preparedness is accomplished through the development and the refinement of our bilateral plans to deter and defeat provocations -- attacks like we saw last year -- while maintaining the ability to respond to other destabilizing conditions.”

U.S. Pacific Command commander Navy Adm. Robert F. Willard, who testified along with Sharp, added that North Korea’s ballistic missile and nuclear efforts are helping the rogue nation become more than just a threat to its neighbor to the south.

“I do agree that North Korea is becoming a direct threat to the United States,” Willard said, noting that North Korea’s ballistic missile programs are working toward an intercontinental capability.

“It becomes an international threat and, for sure, a potential future threat to the United States,” the admiral said.

Willard said the international community is becoming increasingly impatient with North Korea’s unpredictable and hostile behavior. It’s important that the People’s Republic of China realize the international community’s impatience with North Korea, he said, noting that China is North Korea’s only ally by treaty in the region.

Key to ending North Korea’s weapons development and a potential nuclear and ballistic arms race in the region is productive dialogue with China, Willard explained. “I think it’s appropriate that [China] understands the United States’ impatience and recognize that what is occurring on the Korean Peninsula is not static or stable,” the admiral said. “Rather, we have seen an advancing nuclear capability being developed in the midst of what are very conventional provocations.”

Regional talks with China are focused on making it clear to leaders in Beijing that South Korea is fed up with North Korea’s bellicose actions.

“The situation on the Korean Peninsula has changed; both in South Korea and their unwillingness to tolerate the continued provocations that have become deadly …, as well as the impatience of the international community over the nuclearization piece,” Willard said. “China’s understanding of the acuteness of both of those things is an important factor in generating what influence they can exhort over Pyongyang in order to change this.

“We have a significant challenge on the Korean Peninsula – one that we cannot allow to fester any longer,” he added.

Sharp Emphasizes Need for U.S.-South Korea Alliance

By Terri Moon Cronk

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 6, 2011 – While the U.S.-South Korean troop alliance works to secure and stabilize Northeast Asia, it still faces threats from North Korea, the U.S. Forces Korea commander said today.

The United States maintains forces on the Korean peninsula to deter North Korean provocations and aggressions, and if deterrence fails, to fight and win, Army Gen. Walter “Skip” Sharp told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

As evidence of North Korea’s recent brutality, Sharp pointed to the North’s unprovoked attacks that sank the South Korean ship Cheonon and the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island. The 2010 attacks killed 50 South Koreans.

“The alliance stands ready to address a full spectrum of conflict that could emerge on the Korean peninsula,” Sharp said. “Maintaining this preparedness is accomplished through… a continual refinement of our bilateral plans to deter and defeat aggression.”

Those plans, he said, can be continued through annual joint, combined and interagency exercises to maintain its “fight tonight” readiness.

Successful execution of these bilateral plans requires a well-trained force, and three annual joint, combined and interagency exercises.

Sharp called the exercises “key enablers for maintaining the fight-tonight readiness, while also preparing for the future transition of wartime operational control” to South Korea.

Another priority, Sharp said, is to strengthen the U.S.-South Korea military alliance, in support of the June 2009 joint presidential vision statement between the two countries.

“A strong alliance better deters North Korean provocative acts and promotes a peaceful, secure and prosperous future for the Korean peninsula, the Asia-Pacific region and the world as a whole,” Sharp said.

Last year, President Barack Obama agreed with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak to adjust the timing of the transition of wartime operational control to South Korea from April 2012 to December 2015, Sharp noted.

Obama also agreed to develop a plan “to better synchronize all the ongoing transformation initiatives of which [operational control] transition is just one of the elements,” he said.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-Young signed Strategic Alliance 2015 at a consultative meeting in October, Sharp noted. The plan synchronizes U.S. and South Korean efforts to build adaptive and flexible capabilities to deter aggression, he said.

Repositioning U.S. forces to Camp Humphries at Osan Air Base south of Seoul improves force readiness, Sharp said, and allows for the consolidation of forces onto two enduring hubs.

Normalizing tours in Korea, Sharp said, will improve readiness, combat capability, and lower turbulence in units and reduce the stress placed on troops and families.

Gates approved the normalization plan in December 2008, paving the way for longer, accompanied tours for the 28,500 U.S. service members stationed throughout South Korea. For many years, the tour of duty in Korea was one year, and unaccompanied by family members.

Sharp told the committee his command’s support of the Strategic Initative 2015, the U.S. troops' relocation and other initiatives, demonstrate a long U.S. commitment to securing South Korea and the region.

Gates Consults With South Korea on North’s Provocations

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

SEOUL, South Korea, Jan. 14, 2011 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates visited South Korean leaders here today to demonstrate American solidarity against North Korean provocations.

North Korea sank the South Korean ship Cheonan in March, killing 46 sailors. In November, North Korea shelled the South Korean island of Yeongpeong, killing two civilians and two South Korean marines.

“We are all concerned about the tense situation on the peninsula caused by North Korea's continued belligerence and repeated provocations over the past few months," Gates said at the beginning of a meeting with Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin.

During the meeting, Gates and Kim discussed South Korean-U.S. military coordination and consultations to deter future provocations.

Gates said diplomatic engagement is possible, starting with direct engagement between North Korea and South Korea, but only if “North Korea's actions show cause to believe that negotiations can be productive and conducted in good faith.”

Following the meeting with Kim, Gates traveled to the Blue House and met with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak. He spoke to both Kim and Lee about his meetings with Chinese and Japanese leaders.

Earlier in the week, Gates said a moratorium on nuclear research and testing and a moratorium on building intercontinental ballistic missiles would be examples of concrete steps North Korea could take. Only with these concrete steps, he added, could the Six-Party Talks -- with the United States, China, Russia, Japan, South Korea and North Korea -- resume.

“But the [North Korean] leadership must stop these dangerous provocations and take concrete steps to show that they will begin meeting international obligations," Gates said.

The Six-Party Talks began in 2003 after North Korea withdrew from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. In response to a United Nations Security Council presidential statement in April 2009 condemning a failed satellite launch, North Korea pulled out of the talks and announced it would resume its nuclear enrichment program.

Gates Stresses Need to Prevent North Korean Provocations

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

TOKYO, Jan. 13, 2011 – Preventing another North Korea provocation of South Korea is in everyone’s interest, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

In the past year, North Korea torpedoed the South Korean ship Cheonan, killing 46 sailors, and shelled the island of Yeongpeong, killing two civilians and two South Korean service members.

“Every country has the right to protect itself and defend itself against an unprovoked attack,” Gates said during a news conference at the Japanese defense ministry. “I think the key on the Korean peninsula, as I discussed in China and here in Japan, is to prevent another provocation from happening.”

The danger of escalation of force exists, the secretary said, and the United States, Japan, China and South Korea must work together to ensure stability and peace on the Korean peninsula.

North Korea has said it is willing to negotiate with South, Gates noted, but he added that the Pyongyang government must demonstrate it will change its behavior.

“This requires that the North cease its belligerent behavior, and its provocations that have killed innocent victims, both military and civilian, in Korea,” Gates said. “We are supportive of negotiations and engagement between North and South but there must be concrete evidence on the part of the North that they are serious about these negotiations.”

Gates has spoken with Chinese leaders about the situation on the peninsula, and his meetings today examined the subject. He will visit Seoul tomorrow to talk with South Korean leaders on the way ahead.

“All four countries have a common interest in a peaceful outcome and stability on the peninsula, and in each place we’ve talked about how to pursue that,” he said.

The secretary said wants to break the cycle of North Korean violence followed by crocodile tears.

“We have seen this cycle over and over again, and I think the objective we all have in common is how to prevent another provocation from taking place. How do we move the process forward on the peninsula in a way that shows the North Koreans are serious about engagement, serious about negotiations and that this is not just a repeat of what we have seen so often in the past after a provocation of trying to re-set the clock back to what it was before?” he said.

In China, he called for concrete North Korean steps, suggesting that a moratorium on nuclear and missile work would be a good place to start.

Gates met with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara and Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa. In addition to North Korea, Gates briefed the men on his visit to Beijing and meetings with Chinese leaders.

He also discussed the challenges associated with China’s growing military strength, the U.S.-Japanese collaboration on ballistic missile defense and in furthering U.S.-Japanese cooperation in areas such as counterpiracy, peacekeeping disaster response, humanitarian assistance and other important multinational efforts. These efforts include Japan’s substantial financial contributions to Afghanistan.

The meetings also covered a discussion on new Japanese defense program guidelines. He called the study “a forward-thinking document that reaffirms the importance of our alliance, including the U.S. military presence, to Japan’s defense.”

The leaders also discussed the U.S.-Japan alliance and its new vision statement.

“It has been about five years since the last vision statement, and the world and circumstances in Northeast Asia have evolved a good deal since then,” Gates said. “So it is appropriate to update our alliance at this time.”

The U.S. and Japanese leaders also discussed the relocation of U.S. forces in Okinawa.

Gates is scheduled to make a major speech tomorrow on the U.S-Japanese alliance at Keio University before flying to South Korea.

Lassen Returns from Final 2010 Underway

By Ensign Sean A. Brophy, USS Lassen Public Affairs

YOKOSUKA, Japan (NNS) -- The guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen (DDG 82) returned to Yokosuka, Japan, Dec. 13.

Lassen joined USS George Washington (CVN 73) Carrier Strike Group during the past two weeks to participate in exercises with the Republic of Korea (ROK) navy and air force and with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) during Keen Sword 2011.

Exercises with the ROK military in waters west of the Korean peninsula were planned months in advance to increase the interoperability between the ROK navy and U.S. Navy. The two navies participated in highly coordinated drills including anti-submarine warfare and anti-air warfare scenarios.

The exercises also provided the opportunity for the U.S. to reinforce and emphasize its commitment to the Republic of Korea.

Following the completion of Korean naval exercises Dec. 1, Lassen took part in Keen Sword 2011 with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Forces.

Joined by the attack submarines USS San Francisco (SSN 711) and USS Houston (SSN 713), and the Japanese destroyers JS Hatakaze (DDG 171) and JS Hamagiri (DD 155), Lassen was the only U.S. surface ship playing the role of opposition forces.

"Taking part in exercises like these is what being forward deployed is all about," said Cmdr. H. B. Le, USS Lassen commanding officer. "Working together with our allies' military forces — particularly the maritime forces — improves our mutual interoperability and promotes regional security and stability in the Western Pacific. It also supports U.S. 7th Fleet's persistent priority to develop and build maritime partnerships."

Earlier this year Lassen was presented the Commander, Naval Surface Forces Battle Effectiveness Award and awarded the 2010 Association of Old Crows Outstanding Navy (Surface) Unit Award.

Lassen's very own Chief Operational Specialist (SW) Samira McBride was recognized for her individual performance when she was selected as one the Navy's four Sailors of the Year.

Away from its forward-deployed port for 201 days in 2010, Lassen's crew made several port calls to Saipan, Korea, India, Guam, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and locations in Japan.

USS Lassen will hold its sixth change of command ceremony Dec. 17, as Cmdr. Walter C. Wrye IV will assume duties as Lassen's seventh commanding officer. Lassen is assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15 and is forward-deployed to Yokosuka, Japan.

'We're at Your Side,' Mullen Tells South Koreans

By Donna Miles

American Forces Press Service

SEOUL, South Korea, Dec. 8, 2010 – Following what he called “a very full day of meaningful discussions” today with South Korean leaders, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff condemned North Korea’s acts of aggression and praised South Korea for demonstrating restraint to keep it from escalating.

Mullen and General Han Min-goo, chairman of the South Korean military, also announced following their consultative meeting that they had agreed to strengthen their joint efforts to deter further provocations and war.

The leaders condemned North Korea’s Nov. 23 “deliberate and illegal armed attack” on Yeonpyeong island.

Mullen noted that the attack, which killed two marines and two civilians, brings to 50 the number of South Koreans killed this year at North Korean hands. Forty-six South Korean sailors were killed March 26 when a North Korean torpedo sunk the South Korean frigate Cheonan.

“Rather than meet belligerence in kind, you chose to meet it with restraint and readiness,” Mullen told Han. “The poise you have demonstrated befits the true strength of your position and the character of your people.”

Mullen emphasized, however, that North Korea “should not mistake this restraint for lack of resolve” or a sign of South Korea’s “willingness to accept continue attacks to go unchallenged.”

Han said North Korea’s provocations have become increasingly bold and he foresees a situation that could require “an alliance-level response.” He said he and Mullen discussed plans that would provide “an instantaneous and very firm response” to a possible future attack.

Joint exercises last week off the peninsula’s west coast improved interoperability between the U.S. and South Korean militaries, Mullen said, while also sending North Korea “a strong signal of our intent to deter future acts of aggression.”

Mullen, responding to a reporter’s question, said South Korea, as a sovereign nation, “has every right to protect its people and to respond as it sees fit to effectively carry out that responsibility.”

“They also have the right to choose the method with which they respond,” he said.

However, Mullen emphasized that the true goal of the U.S.-South Korean alliance is to provide a deterrence that would make such retaliation unnecessary.

The chairman praised Han for his leadership during “difficult times” in building the capabilities required to provide that deterrent effect.

“Your readiness to defend your territory and your citizens is unmistakable, and my country’s commitment to helping you do that is unquestioned,” he said.

Mullen recognized that the United States has stood at South Korea’s side for the last six decades and told the South Koreans that President Barack Obama had sent assurances that “we will be at your side for many more.”

Today’s talks with Han, National Security Advisor Chun Yung-woo, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and 1st Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Shin Kak-soo took “a long-term view” of the alliance to ensure near-term actions are guided by the Strategic Alliance 2015 framework enacted in October, Mullen said. The talks also centered on “ensuring our plans, training and exercises are focused on full-spectrum operations to deter, and if necessary, defeat, a rapidly evolving threat,” he said.

“That is why I am here today, quite frankly, to address those challenges together, to explore new ways we can overcome them, together, and to reaffirm America’s resolve to ensuring together with South Korea our mutual security objectives on the peninsula and in the region,” he said.

Mullen said he looks forward to working with Army Gen. Walter “Skip” Sharp, the top U.S. military officer in South Korea, as he works with his South Korean counterparts to develop specific plans and exercises supporting these goals.