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US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo hold a joint press conference at the Pentagon in Washington DC

A plan by the South Korean government for the permanent rotational deployment of strategic US weapons on the Korean Peninsula, intended to strengthen its deterrent against the North Korean nuclear and missile programs, has been shelved.

The South Korean Minister of National Defense and US Secretary of Defense discussed the plan at their 40th Security Consultative Meeting at the Pentagon in Washington on Oct. 20, but failed to reach an agreement.

At a joint press conference with US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter after the meeting, Defense Minister Han Min-koo said only that additional measures “such as the deployment of strategic assets permanently on the Korean Peninsula on a rotational basis” would be examined at a later date.

In their joint statement the same day, the two ministers would only say they had agreed to examine additional measures to strengthen extended deterrence with the 2+2 (Foreign and Defense Ministers’) Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG) framework to eliminate any doubts from Pyongyang on the alliance’s resolve.

The South Korean Ministry of National Defense began discussing the idea of rotational deployment with the US after South Korean conservatives complained that US strategic assets were not being mobilized in a timely manner in response to North Korea’s nuclear tests and missile launches. Both sides were reported as originally agreeing on the permanent deployment of strategic weapons on the peninsula on a rotational basis, which was to be reflected in their joint statement. “Strategic weapons” include long-range strategic bombers, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, and nuclear-powered submarines, which are capable of carrying nuclear weapons and moving over long distances and possess extensive destructive force.

Han addressed the issue in a separate talk with foreign correspondents and reporters assigned to the ministry after the joint press conference.

“There is no doubt whatsoever about the US’s ability and commitment to duties in terms of supporting and defending South Korea. I have stated several times the position that they are certain even now,” he said.

“At the same time, in response to our request that this be fleshed out a bit more, the US settled on the position that we should try discussing it and examining it in more detail through the Foreign and Defense Ministry vice minister-level consultative group created this time and the South Korea-US Deterrence Strategy Committee (DSC) that we have been using,” he continued.

Han’s remarks suggest the US may have balked at South Korea’s calls for permanent rotational deployment of strategic assets.

But when asked repeatedly whether the US did send a message of delicate refusal, Han replied, “The US never made any euphemistic refusal, and it would be more appropriate to understand its message as being that it was not strategic to specify that it would or would not be doing a certain thing strategically.”

By Yi Yong-in, Washington correspondent

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