S. Korean, US, Japanese military chiefs to meet in Seoul
Top military commanders from South Korea, the United States and Japan are expected to meet in Seoul next week to discuss issues related to North Korea, including its nuclear weapons program and recent missile provocations.
According to South Korea’s military on Thursday, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Kim Myung-soo will host his US counterpart, Gen. Dan Caine, and Japan’s Chief of Staff, Joint Staff Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, for a trilateral meeting in Seoul on July 10 and 11.
Gen. Caine, who assumed his position in April, is visiting Seoul for the first time since the start of the Lee Jae Myung administration. The last visit by a US Joint Chiefs chairman took place in November 2023.
The previous trilateral meeting among the military chiefs of South Korea, the US, and Japan was in Tokyo on July 18, 2024.
The gathering comes amid growing speculation that Washington may ask Seoul to increase its contribution to the cost of stationing US forces on the Korean Peninsula or propose adjustments to the role of US troops — similar to how NATO allies have recently expanded their defense budgets in response to calls from US President Donald Trump.
Reflecting these concerns, Caine said during his confirmation hearing in April that, if confirmed, he would review the scale of US forces deployed in South Korea and Japan and submit recommendations to the secretary of defense and the president.
South Korea’s military, meanwhile, has dismissed such speculation, stating, “The agenda of the meeting is strictly limited to trilateral military cooperation and responses to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.” As of press time, there are no confirmed plans for Caine to meet with South Korean officials outside the military leadership.
The meeting also comes as Seoul and Washington are reportedly exploring the possibility of holding a bilateral summit later this month.
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