Kang Shin-chul Says Hegseth Dismissed Rumors of Alliance Rift as 'Fake News'

U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth dismissed recent rumors of a rift in the South Korea-U.S. alliance as "fake news" during their bilateral meeting, South Korean Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul said.

Kang made the remarks today to reporters on his way into the Ministry of National Defense building after returning from the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) in the Philippines, responding "There were no disagreements" when asked if there truly were no differences between Seoul and Washington.

"Regarding the many rumors currently circulating (about friction in the alliance), Secretary Hegseth had just one word to say: 'fake news,'" Kang said, adding, "I agree with him."

He went on to emphasize, "I believe such things cannot shake the solidity of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, nor should they be allowed to."

Kang held a separate bilateral meeting with Hegseth for about 40 minutes on October 28 on the sidelines of the ADMM-Plus.

During the meeting, the South Korean side reportedly brought up various domestic media reports concerning alleged signs of strain in the alliance, to which Hegseth reportedly responded, "I don't believe them; it's fake news."

When asked whether the U.S. also agreed to complete the Full Operational Capability (FOC) verification of the Future Combined Forces Command to set a target year for the wartime operational control (OPCON) transfer at the South Korea-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) early next year, Kang did not give a direct answer, emphasizing instead, "The greatest achievement was that we agreed to align our views on the OPCON transfer."

He reiterated, "This was a good meeting that reaffirmed the ironclad nature of the South Korea-U.S. alliance."

Asked whether he raised the issue of promptly lifting restrictions on sharing intelligence on North Korea between Seoul and Washington, Kang said, "Militarily, it is a very small portion, so we do not view it as a major issue," adding, "You can consider it as belonging to other intelligence sectors."

(Photo courtesy of the Ministry of National Defense, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.