NOTE: This document has been translated from the Japanese original for reference purposes only. In the event of any discrepancy between this translated document and the Japanese.
The defense ministers of the Republic of Korea and the United States agreed to significantly strengthen deterrence against North Korea in response to a series of North Korean provocations. It was agreed to deploy U.S. falling assets on the Korean Peninsula at a level equivalent to the regular deployment, and to hold an annual exercise to prepare for North Korea's use of nuclear weapons.
U.S. officials are predicting that North Korea will complete preparations for its seventh nuclear test within this month. Earlier, North Korea was known to have begun to restore the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, but recently, new movements that have not been seen in the past have been caught by satellites one after another.
US President Biden has announced that he will visit Japan to attend the Quad Summit on the 24th of next month. It is highly likely that he will visit South Korea on this tour, raising the possibility that the first US-Korea summit between President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol and President Biden will be held.