BIDEN WRAPS UP VISIT IN KOREA

[Anchor Lead]

On the final day of U.S. President Joe Biden's trip to Korea, the South Korean and U.S. leaders visited a military base, which plays a pivotal role in North Korea nuclear and missile response. They reaffirmed their commitment to joint security response on the Korean Peninsula.

[Pkg]

This is the Operations Room of the Korean Air and Space Operations Center, where service members from South Korea and the U.S. work together in front of a large monitor displaying information on the security situation. For the first time, the presidents of South Korea and the U.S. visited the center together.

[Soundbite] Joe Biden(U.S. President)

[Soundbite] Yoon Suk-yeol(S. Korean President) : "I'm sure you're all very close. You're all friends. Your friendship is the power of the ROK-U.S. alliance."

The center monitors the entire peninsula and issues commands in times of emergency. It's a key facility for interception and preemptive strikes of the "Three Axis System," a strategy for countering North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. The two leaders' visit is seen as a warning to Pyongyang, which has finished preparations for nuclear and ICBM tests.

[Soundbite] Yoon Suk-yeol(S. Korean President) : "This is a key facility where S. Korea and the U.S. jointly respond to N. Korea's missile threat. It also symbolizes the ROK-U.S. alliance."

Biden insinuated in his statement that Pyongyang should respond to Washington's offer for unconditional dialogue instead of continuing its provocations.

[Soundbite] Joe Biden(U.S. President)

After greeting American servicemen, the U.S. president wrapped up his three-day trip to Korea and left for Japan. In his final remarks, Biden told Yoon he trusts him. The presidential office says the two leaders said goodbye by giving each other a thumbs-up.