{
  "id": 16688590,
  "title": "Defense chiefs of S. Korea, US to hold talks in Philippines ahead of ASEAN meeting",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/27/defense-chiefs-of-s-korea-us-to-hold-talks-in-philippines-ahead-of",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-27T01:47:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/defense/20261027/defense-chiefs-of-s-korea-us-to-hold-talks-in-philippines-ahead-of-asean-meeting"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will meet in the Philippines this week, marking their first bilateral talks since Kang took office in September. This encounter will occur a day before the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting (ADMM) Plus plenary in Cebu, according to a source familiar with the situation. This first meeting will be an important opportunity for the two defense chiefs to discuss pending defense and alliance issues, especially concerning Seoul's efforts to regain wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington. The South Korean government is keen on securing OPCON control before the end of Kang's five-year term in 2030, or even sooner.",
  "summary": "Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will hold their first bilateral talks in the Philippines this week ahead of a ministerial meeting led by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a source familiar with the matter said Tuesday. Kang and Hegseth are expected to meet one-on-one on Wednesday, a day ahead of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting (ADMM)…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": "Prioritizing bilateral discussions before regional summits signals Seoul's urgency to secure wartime operational control from Washington before the current defense minister's term concludes in 2030.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "Defense chiefs of S. Korea, U.S. to hold talks in Philippines ahead of ASEAN meeting",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/27/defense-chiefs-of-s-korea-u-s-to-hold-talks-in-philippines-ahead-of",
        "published": "2026-10-27T01:24:16.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}