NEW YORK, Sept. 21 (Yonhap) -- Presidents Moon Jae-in and Donald Trump agreed Thursday to expand the deployment of U.S. strategic assets to South Korea and surrounding areas.
During their summit on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, they underscored the need to maintain overwhelming deterrence against North Korea, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Park Soo-hyun said at a press briefing.
To this end, they agreed to strengthen their countries' joint defense capabilities, partly through Seoul's acquisition and development of "the most advanced military assets," Park said.
The two leaders strongly condemned North Korea's latest nuclear provocation as a serious and escalating threat.
"The two leaders shared a view on the need for the strongest pressure and sanctions against North Korea to deter North Korea's provocative activities and make it start taking steps toward denuclearization," he said.
Earlier reports suggested the leaders were set to announce an agreement for Seoul's acquisition or development of nuclear-powered submarines, a strategic asset that could counter North Korea's submarine-launched ballistic missiles. Seoul earlier dismissed the reports.
The Cheong Wa Dae spokesman refused to confirm whether Seoul's acquisition of the most advanced military assets would include nuclear-propelled submarines.
Their second bilateral summit was watched closely as it came two days after Trump warned of a possible military action against Pyongyang.
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