Japan and South Korea hold “defense minister level” talks for the first time in a year… “Defense authorities will communicate closely”

On the 18th, Shin Beom-chul, vice-minister of the South Korean Ministry of National Defense, took the opportunity of participating in the "2023 Seoul Security Dialogue" (SDD) held in Seoul, South Korea, to meet Kiyoshi Serizawa, vice-minister of the Japanese Ministry of Defense.
(Vice Minister level) and Japan-Korea Vice-Ministers of Defense held talks. The South Korean Ministry of National Defense said, ``Since bilateral relations have been normalized due to the restoration of shuttle diplomacy between the leaders of South Korea and Japan, we have been working hard to deter North Korea's increasingly sophisticated nuclear and missile threats and strengthen regional cooperation.
(These talks) were made possible because both sides agreed that security cooperation between South Korea and Japan, as well as South Korea, the United States, and Japan is important in order to promote peace and stability.
This is the first time in a year that Japan-ROK vice-ministerial level talks have been held since last September.
Since the leaders of Japan and South Korea agreed to develop bilateral relations to a higher level, the defense authorities of Japan and South Korea also agreed to work closely together to enhance security cooperation.
We decided to communicate. It is also important to share the recognition of the severe security environment on the Korean Peninsula, build trust between the defense authorities of Japan and the ROK, and advance exchange and cooperation at various levels.
The consensus was that it was important. In particular, Vice-Minister Shin and Vice-Minister Serizawa held talks between defense authorities in order to advance Japan-Korea security cooperation in a future-oriented manner based on the results of the Japan-Korea Summit in June this year.
I decided to continue.