The top military officers of South Korea and the United States discussed the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and pending alliance issues in their first phone call. 

According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff(JCS) on Wednesday, JCS Chief Kim Myung-soo talked to his new U.S. counterpart, John Daniel Caine, on Tuesday in their first call since Caine took office. 

The two sides concurred that the security situation on the Korean Peninsula is stable and the allies’ combined defense posture remains intact. 

They also agreed on the importance of establishing the capability and readiness to effectively respond to the escalating threats from North Korea — including nuclear, missile and cyber threats — at a time when the North is expanding cooperation with Russia.

Kim called for close cooperation to advance the South Korea-U.S alliance, calling it one of the most exemplary and strongest alliances in the world and a key pillar in maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region.

The JCS said the two sides agreed to step up trilateral security cooperation with Japan through the South Korea-U.S.-Japan Trilateral Chiefs of Defense meeting, set to take place in South Korea in July.