한미공조 강화, 한중 한일 군교류 본격화: 국방위 업무보고<br /><br />The nation's Defense Ministry laid out plans to boost military ties with the U.S.<br />Seoul will also meet with China and Japan to try and patch up strained relations through increased dialogue.<br />Kim Ji-yeon fill us in. <br />At a briefing held at the National Defense Committee on Monday, Minister of National Defense Jeong Kyeong-doo said he plans to hold a meeting in Washington with the U.S. defense chief early next month.<br />Minister Jeong and acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan are expected to touch on pending issues such as the transfer of wartime operational control.<br /> Another highly anticipated topic are the combined military drills later this year and the allies' latest Dong Maeng joint exercise, which replaced the Key Resolve command post exercise. <br />They are also expected to discuss the security situation of the Korean peninsula post the Hanoi summit... and come up with follow-up measures.<br /> South Korea is also having a joint army meeting with Japan this month. <br />This will be followed by a Seoul-Washington-Tokyo trilateral security meeting in May, with working-level talks also scheduled, which will likely focus on resolving strained Seoul-Tokyo ties stemming from naval disputes due to Tokyo's claims that a South Korean warship had used its targeting radar to lock onto a Japanese patrol plane.<br /> The defense ministry also announced a ministerial-level meeting with China to take place for the first time in over a year-and-a-half in May... as part of efforts to promote communication and normalize relations after a diplomatic row stemming from Beijing's opposition to Seoul's decision to deploy the U.S. THAAD missile defense system.<br />South Korea and China will also hold a ceremony on April 3 to repatriate Chinese soldiers killed in the Korean War.<br />Regarding the North, the defense ministry says it'll hold working-level talks with its North Korean counterpart about carrying out the joint statement from the inter-Korean summit last September.<br />On whether North Korea is working on its nuclear programs, Minister Jeong said that South Korea is keeping a close watch on places in the North including the Dongchang-ri missile engine testing site.<br />He said it's too soon to say that suspected activity there is preparation for a missile test.<br />Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.
