The Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD) held in Washington D.C. [Photo courtesy of the Ministry of National Defense]

While South Korea and the United States hold differing views on issues such as the transition of wartime operational control (OPCON), defense authorities held a meeting of the Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD), a vice-ministerial-level consultation, to discuss the alliance's direction.

The Ministry of National Defense announced on the 14th that the KIDD meeting was held in Washington D.C. on the 12th-13th (local time), with Kim Hong-chul, Director General for National Defense Policy, leading the South Korean delegation, and Jenny Kim, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, and James Finch, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia and the Pacific, representing the U.S.

Representatives from key defense and diplomatic sectors of both countries also participated.

During the meeting, both sides evaluated the current state of defense cooperation within the ROK-U.S. alliance and exchanged views on policy directions to strengthen the alliance's combined defense posture.

The Ministry of National Defense also stated that both sides agreed to actively pursue cooperation in implementing the defense sector of the joint fact sheet agreed upon by the leaders of South Korea and the U.S. in November last year, and the joint statement from the 57th ROK-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) held last year.

Both sides assessed that the KIDD provides an important foundation for advancing practical cooperation to further solidify the alliance and agreed to deepen cooperation to achieve common security goals on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region.

It is believed that attempts were made to coordinate differences between South Korea and the U.S. on pending alliance issues, such as OPCON, during this KIDD meeting. However, the results announcement did not specifically mention the discussions on OPCON.

Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-baek, who met with U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegese in Washington D.C. on the 11th (local time), just prior to the KIDD meeting, stated that while he agreed on the prompt transition of OPCON, "there are some differing opinions on the U.S. side."

Pending issues such as cooperation on the construction of nuclear-powered submarines and plans for the divided management of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), which is currently under the jurisdiction of the UN Command, are also believed to have been discussed, but no details were provided on the discussions held.

However, the commitment to actively implement the ROK-U.S. leaders' joint fact sheet and the outcomes of last year's SCM can be interpreted as an indication of both countries' willingness to continue seeking progress on OPCON and nuclear-powered submarine issues.

The leaders of South Korea and the U.S. agreed in last year's joint fact sheet to cooperate on South Korea's construction of nuclear-powered submarines. Furthermore, at the 57th SCM last year, it was agreed to determine the target year for OPCON transition at this year's SCM.

The KIDD meeting, established in 2011, is a high-level consultative body for timely and effective security consultations between South Korea and the U.S., held once or twice a year, alternating hosts. This KIDD meeting also serves as a preparation for the ROK-U.S. defense ministers' SCM to be held at the end of this year.