Washington and Seoul showed their unity across the Pacific on Wednesday during a joint press conference between South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Joe Biden at the White House. As often, the North Korean question was at the center of discussions between the two allies. “We can achieve peace through overwhelming superior force, not a fake peace based on the other side’s goodwill,” the South Korean president said.
The questions quickly focused on the nuclear risk, while Pyongyang has been increasing the firing of intercontinental ballistic missiles for more than a year. But Joe Biden assured that a nuclear attack from North Korea would bring about the “end” of the authoritarian regime. For his part, the South Korean president affirmed that the United States would respond to any North Korean nuclear attack.
