Gen. Xavier Brunson, left, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, and Adm. Kim Myung-soo, chairman of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), salute during a ceremony marking Brunson's visit to the headquarters of the JCS in Seoul, Jan. 9. Yonhap

The top commander of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) on Thursday highlighted the need to maintain trilateral security cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan, the South's military said, amid growing military threats from North Korea.

Gen. Xavier Brunson made the remark as he met Adm. Kim Myung-soo, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), at Kim's office in central Seoul, which marked Brunson's first visit of its kind since he took office last month, according to the JCS.

Brunson said that regional stability relies on the growing partnership between the three countries, noting that it is "critical" to maintain the momentum on trilateral exercises, the JCS said in a release.

The three countries have recently stepped up security cooperation through various drills in the face of evolving North Korean threats, highlighted by the North's launch of what it claimed to be a new hypersonic missile on Monday.

During the talks, Kim said that North Korea is likely to undertake "strategic provocations" to set favorable external conditions for itself, calling for close coordination between the two sides to maintain their readiness.

Brunson, who took office on Dec. 20, also serves as the commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and U.N. Command that oversees the armistice of the 1950-53 Korean War. (Yonhap)