Japan should assume its role as a major U.S. security partner

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was in Seoul in November for the 55th U.S.-Republic of Korea Security Consultative Meeting. The annual summit is a reminder of how deep America’s links to the Indo-Pacific region go; more than 300,000 South Korean personnel served in the Vietnam War, and 5,000 lost their lives. Austin also used his visit to hold a trilateral meeting with Shin Wonsik, Korea’s minister of national defense, and Minoru Kihara, Japan’s recently appointed defense minister, and a major agenda item was the future of Taiwan.