Seoul: The United States and Japan appear to support South Korea's efforts to renew dialogue with North Korea, a Seoul official indicated following recent trilateral talks among the three nations.
According to Yonhap News Agency, a senior foreign ministry official shared that during the meeting, which took place on the sidelines of a multilateral forum hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the U.S. and Japan maintained their principled positions but also seemed to align with South Korea's stance of keeping avenues for dialogue with North Korea open. The meeting was attended by First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.
Park presented South Korea's strategies to reduce inter-Korean tensions and resume discussions with the North. He highlighted the importance of close cooperation with Washington and Tokyo to advance these efforts. President Lee Jae Myung's administration, which commenced in early June, is focused on maintaining communication channels with Pyongyang while bolstering strong deterrence against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats through its alliance with the U.S.
The official mentioned that the Lee government has stopped anti-Pyongyang loudspeaker broadcasts along the border, leading North Korea to cease its own broadcasts in response. Park informed Rubio and Iwaya about these developments during the talks.
The trilateral meeting was arranged at the U.S.'s initiative and was attended by Park in place of the Foreign Minister nominee Cho Hyun due to the ongoing appointment process. The official noted that while the discussions did not cover the tariff negotiations with the U.S., the meeting underscored the importance of the partnership among the three countries.
Park expressed the significance of the trilateral talks, even without South Korea's top diplomat, and emphasized the commitment to continue holding meetings at all levels to strengthen their collaboration.