Ask what Korea is talking about.

South Korean Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will hold their first bilateral talks in the Philippines this week, ahead of an ASEAN-led defense ministers' meeting, according to Yonhap and the Korea Times. Kang heads to the Philippines Tuesday for his first multilateral security gathering since taking office, the Ministry of National Defense said. The talks come as Kang's ministry clarified that his recent remarks on U.S. trust were meant to counter a lawmaker's doubts over Seoul's push to retake wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington, not to question the ally's credibility, Yonhap reports.