Cheong Wa Dae says Seoul does not have any immediate plans to purchase U.S. weapons worth "billions of dollars" as suggested by the White House. 

Following telephone talks between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, the White House stated that Trump provided "his conceptual approval for the purchase of many billions of dollars' worth of military weapons and equipment" by South Korea. It quickly led to speculation that Moon agreed with Trump to swiftly purchase expensive American weapons.

South Korean Presidential Spokesman Park Soo-hyun explained on Tuesday that during the phone call, the two leaders only agreed in principle to move forward their discussions on Washington’s assistance for Seoul in introducing state-of-the-art weapons or technologies necessary to strengthen defense capabilities.

Park said the presidents shared the view that South Korea needs to strengthen its defenses, including the three-axis defense system, in order to respond to North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats and continue cooperation to that end.

The three-axis defense system refers to the “Kill Chain” preemptive strike system, the Korean Air and Missile Defense(KAMD) system and the Korean Massive Punishment and Retaliation(KMPR) plan.

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