Secretary of War Pete Hegseth Hosted Bilateral Meeting With the Republic of Korea Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back at the Pentagon

May 11, 2026

SECRETARY OF WAR PETE HEGSETH: Well, Minister Ahn, it is an honor to welcome you and your team to here in the Pentagon. Thank you for making the trip to Washington. Our meeting today arrives at a pivotal moment for the US ROK Alliance. Together, our nations are taking strong actions to ensure our combined readiness and to defend vital national security interests.

President Trump's historic authorization of Operation Epic Fury clearly demonstrates this administration's unwavering commitment to confronting threats and defending those interests with unwavering commitment. In this current global threat environment, the strength of our alliance is critical, and we look to our partners to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with us. As I noted during my visit to Seoul last November, Republic of Korea's commitment to increase defense spending and your leadership in assuming primary responsibility for the security of the Korean Peninsula is very important.

It demonstrates alliance burden-sharing that all of America's partners would do well to follow. Real burden-sharing is the foundation of a resilient alliance, and it is essential for effectively deterring our mutual adversaries. So today, we will build on that strong momentum. We are grateful that you're here and look forward to a highly productive discussion. Thank you, sir. Go ahead. 

AHN GYU-BACK: Just because we get to see familiar faces today, it really epitomizes what an alliance truly is. It's a big honor to have such a good meeting between the two countries, despite the difficult conditions that we're facing today. First, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to Secretary Hegseth and all the U.S. members for warmly welcoming the delegation.

I would like to applaud Secretary Hegseth for restoring the warrior ethos of the US military under the motto of peace through strength since you took office and advancing the world's number one military into a more lethal armed forces. We are also keeping pace, putting our utmost efforts into achieving a ROK-led defense of the Korean Peninsula by acquiring critical national defense capabilities through measures such as increasing defense spending.

I believe this meeting is a significant opportunity to assess the achievements of the joint fact sheet between the presidents last year and the 57th Security Consultative Meeting, and to communicate about the alliance's direction moving forward. As a ROK-US alliance has stood together upon a bedrock of unwavering trust even through hard times, we remain committed to close cooperation in the future in one voice. I hope today's meeting brings about a mutually fruitful results between the ROK and the US. Thank you.

SECRETARY OF WAR PETE HEGSETH: Absolutely. Thank you. Thank you.