S. Korea, Japan defense chiefs sidestep logistics pact

AI핵심 요약

• ·Joint statement omits ACSA, regularized refueling support The defense chiefs of South Korea and Japan on Sunday agreed to continue bilateral and trilateral security cooperation with the United States, while avoiding any mention of a politically sensitive military logistics pact that Tokyo has long sought.
• ·South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi “reaffirmed their commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the establishment of permanent peace,” while agreeing to continue bilateral cooperation between Seoul and Tokyo as well as trilateral cooperation involving Washington, in a joint statement after their talks in Seoul They also agreed to further improve search-and-rescue exercises in preparation for maritime accidents and pursue discussions on advanced science and technology, including artificial intelligence.
• ·But the statement was notable for what it left out.
• ·It made no mention of the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement, a military logistics pact that would allow the two countries’ forces to provide each other with supplies and services such as fuel, food, transportation, maintenance and medical support.
• ·Japan has long sought to conclude an ACSA with South Korea, viewing the pact as a way to institutionalize defense cooperation between the two US allies.