Response to U.S. pressure: Beijing increases North Korea’s involvement, assigning it new roles within the autocratic axis

On July 11, 2025, a meeting of the chiefs of staff of the armed forces of the United States, Japan, and South Korea (Tri-CHOD) took place in Seoul.

Following the meeting, the U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, stated that Washington is committed to comprehensively strengthening defense cooperation within the JAROKUS format to counter the “unprecedented buildup” of Chinese and North Korean military presence in the Indo-Pacific.

These talks were coordinated with large-scale aviation exercises by the JAROKUS coalition. For the first time in 2025, the United States deployed B-52H Stratofortress strategic bombers for a demonstration mission over the Korean Peninsula, accompanied by Mitsubishi F-2 fighters (Japan) and KF-16 Fighting Falcon jets (South Korea).