US, Japanese and South Korean navies have conducted joint exercises in East Asian waters. The last joint exercise was held on Thursday (November 14) before President Joe Biden hands over the reins to President-elect Donald Trump. British news agency Reuters reported this.
The exercise was led by the USS George Washington carrier and its jet fighters. The exercise was held in waters south of the Korean Peninsula and west of Japan's main islands. The exercise follows a deal brokered by Biden in 2023. As a result of the agreement, Seoul and Tokyo put aside years of conflict and united for trilateral security cooperation with the United States.
More exercises are planned for next year. Biden has also taken steps to expand trilateral cooperation in the areas of technology, supply chain security and cyber defense, although neither Trump nor his defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth have yet announced their security plans in the region.
Trump's allies assured Japanese and South Korean officials in June that Trump would support maintaining trilateral ties, multiple sources told Reuters. Earlier in the term, Trump pressed Japan and South Korea to pay more for US forces stationed in their countries.
The latest meeting between the top officials of the three countries raised concerns about increased cooperation between Russia and North Korea. The meeting was attended by security advisers of three countries – Jack Sullivan of the United States, Shin Won-sik of South Korea and Takeo Akiba of Japan.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Ram Emanuel said the trilateral agreement and military cooperation sent a strong message to Beijing. He said, our resistance is stronger now. The positive side of this is that China will understand it as well as us.
