U.S., Japan seen aligning with S. Korea on renewing N.K. dialogue: Seoul official

By Kim Seung-yeon

KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 (Yonhap) -- The United States and Japan appeared to be on the same page with South Korea regarding its efforts to renew dialogue with North Korea, a Seoul official said Friday, following the trilateral talks among the three countries.

A senior foreign ministry official made the remark after the three-way meeting on the sidelines of a multilateral forum hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, joined by First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.

"While the United States and Japan maintained their principled positions and denounce what they think need to be denounced, it appeared that they shared the same stance (as South Korea) in leaving the door open for dialogue with North Korea," the official told reporters on background.

During the talks, Park outlined South Korea's efforts to ease inter-Korean tensions and resume dialogue with the North, calling for close cooperation with Washington and Tokyo to this end.

The new government of President Lee Jae Myung, who took office in early June, has called for keeping channels with Pyongyang open to renew dialogue, while maintaining strong deterrence against the North's nuclear and missile threats through the alliance with the U.S.

"As we keep our principled stance on non-proliferation and denuclearization, we also intend to keep dialogue channels open, and the U.S. and Japan understand this approach," the official said.

As part of these efforts, the Lee government has halted anti-Pyongyang loudspeaker broadcasts across the border, prompting North Korea to stop its own broadcasts in response.

The official said Park explained these developments to Rubio and Iwaya during the talks.

Friday's trilateral talks, attended by Park in place of the Foreign Minister nominee Cho Hyun due to the ongoing appointment process, were arranged at the initiative of the U.S., the official said.

"The U.S. side said it would be a good opportunity to exchange views, and we responded positively," he said.

The three-way talks also drew attention as South Korea and Japan have both been negotiating with the U.S. over steep tariffs to be imposed by the Donald Trump administration.

The official said tariff measures were not part of the discussions, as it is a matter to be negotiated on bilateral terms.

At a press availability, Park said the trilateral talks even without South Korea's top diplomat demonstrated the importance the three countries place on their partnership.

"We agreed to continue holding three-way meetings at every level," Park said.

elly@yna.co.kr
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