Kamala Harris visits DMZ on Thursday

The White House confirmed Tuesday that Vice President Kamala Harris will visit the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea later this week.

Details of the previously unconfirmed visit were announced in remarks by South Korean Prime Minister Han Deok-soo after meeting with the vice president in Tokyo.

Han described the visit as a “symbolic demonstration” of the US commitment to security and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
The White House later confirmed details of a visit that would take place on Thursday.

Using the acronym of South Korea’s official name, the Republic of Korea, the U.S. official said the visit “underlines the strength of the U.S.-South Korea alliance and the U.S. commitment to stand by South Korea’s side in the face of any threat.” ‘ said. Korea.

“The Vice President will tour the DMZ site, meet with military personnel, and receive operational briefings from the Commander of the United States Armed Forces,” the White House said in a statement.

She also said, “We share the sacrifice of the tens of thousands of American and South Korean soldiers who fought and died together, and reaffirm that the United States’ commitment to South Korea’s defense is impregnable.”

A senior government official said the purpose of the visit, in addition to honoring Prime Minister Abe, was to “reaffirm the United States’ commitment to its allies in an increasingly complex security environment” and “deepen its overall engagement in the Indo-Pacific.” ‘ said that.

Harris arrived in Tokyo on Monday and led a US delegation to Japan to attend the funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday.

During his stay in Japan, Mr. Harris will also meet with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. He meets with President Yoon Suk-yeol in Seoul.

The vice president met behind closed doors with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida after landing in Tokyo on Monday.

In remarks after the meeting, Mr. Harris said the U.S. security commitment to Japan remains “impregnable” amid heightened regional tensions.

“The U.S.-Japan alliance is the cornerstone of what we believe is essential to the peace and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region,” she said. She also believes it will be in the interest of the American people,” she said.

The high-profile visit to the region was intended to bolster the vice president’s foreign policy chops amid growing tensions in the Taiwan Strait amid growing speculation about whether President Biden will seek re-election in 2024. Added to White House action.

US-China relations have become increasingly strained after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August.

A California Democrat became the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Taiwan in decades, sparking a series of Chinese military exercises encircling the island 100 miles from the mainland.

The United States has also significantly stepped up its nuclear weapons testing under the Biden administration and is facing heightened tensions with an increasingly belligerent North Korea.

North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile on Sunday in response to the arrival of the USS Ronald Reagan in the port of Busan, a South Korean official said.

The Highship is taking part in joint military exercises with South Korea that began Monday. This is the first joint exercise between the two countries in five years.