"I assured Minister Kim today that the United States remains fully committed to the defense of the ROK and our extended deterrence commitment remains ironclad," Austin said. "That commitment is backed by the full range of America's conventional missile defense, nuclear and advanced non-nuclear capabilities."

He added that the U.S. and South Korea will be returning "to large-scale exercises" and "strengthening [their] combined readiness and our interoperability," Austin added according to a report by RT.