The defense and foreign affairs ministers of South Korea and the United States will meet in Washington for two days from Thursday.

The two-plus-two meetings will center on ways to boost the South Korea-U.S. alliance and promoting bilateral cooperation in addressing issues related to North Korea.

In particular, the two nations are likely to issue during the meetings a strong warning against North Korea's possible provocations.

The two sides are also likely to talk about extending the range of South Korea’s ballistic missiles, though the matter is not included in the official agenda.

South Korea aims to extend the current range from 300 kilometers to 800 kilometers. This increase would allow South Korea to strike any location within North Korea.