Tokyo: Senior diplomats from South Korea, the United States, and Japan have emphasized the necessity of maintaining strong deterrence against North Korea's nuclear threats, following high-level diplomatic talks. They agreed to enhance their trilateral cooperation efforts, South Korean officials reported.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the meeting took place in Tokyo and included South Korea's First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, and Japanese counterpart Takehiro Funakoshi. This was the first such vice foreign ministerial talks since the Lee Jae Myung government in South Korea and the second Donald Trump administration in the U.S.
The South Korean foreign ministry highlighted the vice foreign ministers' commitment to strong deterrence against North Korea's nuclear threats through trilateral cooperation amidst a changing security environment. They aim to progress on North Korea-related issues by enhancing their security cooperation.
Park Yoon-joo provided insights into Seoul's initiatives to mitigate tensions on the Korean Peninsula and to resume dialogue under the Lee government. The recent meeting followed a three-way dialogue in Malaysia, involving Park, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.
Park emphasized that the trilateral cooperation is expanding across multiple sectors, including security, economy, and technology. He highlighted the shared responsibility of the three nations to transform their cooperation potential into concrete outcomes.
The diplomats exchanged views on regional developments and committed to maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. They also agreed to enhance practical cooperation in critical and emerging technologies, especially in critical minerals, supply chains, and artificial intelligence.
The discussions also recognized the advancements in their trilateral partnership framework, such as the establishment of the trilateral secretariat, with a commitment to sustain the partnership's momentum through regular dialogue.
On the sidelines of the trilateral talks, Park met individually with Funakoshi to discuss bilateral relations and related issues, including North Korea. Park expressed South Korea's intent to develop a firm and mature relationship with Japan based on mutual respect and trust. Both parties agreed on the necessity for closer coordination in addressing shared challenges amidst the complex international landscape.