Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work wrapped up a two-day visit to South Korea on Thursday, visiting US troops at Osan AB, Camp Humphreys, and Command Post Tango, as well as South Korean leaders in Seoul. Work reviewed progress on modernizing the US-Republic of Korea alliance, particularly the development of “comprehensive interoperable alliance counter missile capabilities,” during a meeting with US Forces Korea Commander Army Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, according to a Pentagon readout of his meetings. Work’s visit coincided with the start of Ulchi Freedom Guardian, a US-South Korean military exercise that drills participants on the defense of South Korea from an assault by the North. Much of Work’s discussions with National Security Advisor Kim Kwan-jin and Defense Minister Han Min-Koo centered on issues relating to North Korea and security in Northeast Asia. Korean officials gave updates on the recent provocations of the Kim Jong Un regime, including large numbers of missile and artillery firings into the Yellow Sea and the threat of a fourth nuclear test. Work also discussed the importance of building trilateral cooperation with Japan, and building effective alliance capabilities between the three allies. Work’s Asia trip continues through this weekend in Japan.
The Space Force is playing midwife to a new ecosystem of commercial satellite constellations providing alternatives to the service’s own Global Positioning Service from much closer to the Earth, making their signals more accurate and harder to jam.
