US, Japan, South Korea Enhancing Trilateral Communication Capabilities: Official

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's destroyer Atago (L), U.S. Navy's Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Barry (C), and South Korean Navy's Aegis destroyer King Sejong the Great (R) sail during a joint missile defense drill among South Korea, the United States and Japan in the international waters of the east coast of Korean peninsular on Feb. 22, 2023. South Korea Defense Ministry via AP

The United States, South Korea, and Japan are working to bolster their trilateral “lines of voice and video communication” to strengthen security cooperation amid challenges posed by North Korea and China.

A U.S. National Security Council spokesperson said the efforts to improve trilateral communication capabilities between the three allied nations are aligned with a declaration made at the Camp David summit in August.

“In addition to facilitating leader-level communications, we are also working to ensure secure connectivity between other senior members of government, including our respective national security advisers,” the spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency.

President Joe Biden held a trilateral summit with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts at Camp David on Aug. 18, during which they pledged to consult each other in responding to regional challenges.

The three nations are expected to install a trilateral communication hotline for use in times of security crises amid concerns over China’s coercive activities in the Indo-Pacific and North Korea’s missile launches.

Concerns Over North Korea–Russia Military Cooperation

The growing military ties between North Korea and Russia also sparked concerns. The U.S. Mission to the United Nations said that Russia received over 1,000 containers of munitions from North Korea “in recent weeks.”

“These arms transfers directly violate [United Nations Security Council] resolutions and we will expose these arms deals at [the United Nations] alongside our allies and partners,” it stated.

Nuclear envoys from the three nations held talks in Indonesia on Monday to discuss information sharing and response measures. They warned that North Korea would face “consequences” if it were to engage in military cooperation with Russia, according to South Korea’s Foreign Ministry.

The meeting came after North Korea’s official mouthpiece reported Monday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will visit North Korea from Oct. 18 to Oct. 19. The purpose behind his visit was unclear.

Speaking to reporters on Oct. 13, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that North Korea is seeking advanced military technology from Russia in exchange for the deliveries.

“In return for [this] support, we assess that Pyongyang is seeking military assistance from Russia, including fighter aircraft, surface-to-air missiles, armored vehicles, ballistic missile production equipment, and other materials and other advanced technologies,” he said.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (center L) and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (center R) visit the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Amur region on Sept. 13, 2023. Vladimir Smirnov/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a rare visit to Russia last month and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss military issues, North Korea’s budding satellite program, and Ukraine.

It’s widely believed that the summit served as a key negotiating round between the two nations, with North Korea seeking research and technological assistance for its weapons programs and Russia seeking munitions to shore up its dwindling stockpiles in Ukraine.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said in an Oct. 6 report that it detected a “dramatic increase” in the number of freight boxcars at North Korea’s Tumangang Rail Facility—located at the North Korea–Russia border—just five days after the meeting.

Satellite imagery taken on Oct. 5 shows there were at least 73 railcars at the North Korean facility, an increase from the maximum of 20 railcars observed at the facility over the past five years, according to the report.

The U.S. think tank said “it is probable that these shipments are, or include, munitions and artillery,” but added that imagery alone cannot definitively conclude this because the shipping containers are covered.

“However, it is notable that the external characteristics of the crates/containers and equipment are different from those observed during the past five years at the facility,” CSIS stated.

South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman Lim Soo-suk said that military cooperation between North Korea and Russia could negatively impact the relationship between South Korea and Russia, but he did not elaborate.

Andrew Thornebrooke contributed to this report.