OSAN AIR BASE: Air Force commanders from South Korea and the United States convened for an annual meeting to address ongoing threats from North Korea, as tensions rise following the North’s recent aggressive actions. The discussions took place at the two-day Air Boss Conference (ABC), which began on Monday and included around 80 officials from both nations.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the conference at Osan Air Base, located 60 kilometers south of Seoul, brought together commanders from South Korea’s Air Force Operations Command and Air Force Air and Missile Defense Command, as well as representatives from the U.S. 7th Air Force, Marine Corps Forces Korea, and the 5th Air Force stationed in Japan. The focus of the meeting was to assess the security environment in light of North Korea’s continued provocations and its recent decision to send troops to support Russia in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
North Korea’s actions have included accusations against South Korea of deploying drones with anti-North
Korean leaflets to Pyongyang, leading to the destruction of inter-Korean roads on their side of the border. Such developments have intensified the need for the allied forces to reinforce their combined air operations capabilities.
Gen. Kim Hyoung-soo, commander of South Korea’s Air Force Operations Command, emphasized the importance of the conference as an opportunity to enhance operational planning and force deployment concepts. Since its inception in 1992, the ABC has served as a platform for analyzing security challenges on the Korean Peninsula and discussing advancements in air and space operations.