1. First Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam met with US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Honolulu, the US, on July 13 and exchanged views with him on matters of mutual concern, including North Korea and its nuclear program, the situation in Northeast Asia, and global partnership.

2. The Vice Minister and the Deputy Secretary shared the view that North Korea’s nuclear and missile development as well as its serial provocations poses a grave threat to peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but also in Northeast Asia, and that the denuclearization of North Korea is in significant strategic interest of all the countries in the region. They agreed to coordinate closely, with their top priority on the denuclearization of North Korea.

° The two sides agreed to continue the international momentum of sanctioning and pressuring North Korea, including through a thorough implementation of UN Security Council resolutions, and to intensify the “international community vs. North Korea” structure with regard to North Korean nuclear issue.

° Vice Minister Lim extended appreciation to the US for its recent sanctions against North Korea across the board, including the designation of North Korea as a jurisdiction of “primary money laundering concern” on June 1 and the imposition of sanctions against human rights abusers in North Korea on July 6. The two sides agreed to step up their bilateral coordination in a bid to make North Korea change its strategic calculus and actions.

3. The two ranking diplomats noted with appreciation that the ROK and the US had made an alliance decision to deploy a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) to US Forces Korea as a self-defensive measure to ensure the security of the ROK and its people from the growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea. They drew a common understanding that the THAAD deployment will help improve the ROK-US combined defense capability.

° The two sides agreed to further strengthen the ROK-US deterrence and combined defense posture against possible provocations from North Korea. They also shared the view that should North Korea engage in a further provocation, it will face tougher sanctions and isolation.

4. The Vice Minister and the Deputy Secretary exchanged views on matters of mutual concern, including the situation in Northeast Asia and global partnership.

° Deputy Secretary Blinken extended appreciation to the ROK for its recent financial pledge for the stabilization of Afghanistan and humanitarian assistance to Syria and Iraq. He voiced hope for closer cooperation on such global issues as climate change and refugees.

5. During his visit to Honolulu, Vice Minister Lim also met with Commander Harry Harris of the US Pacific Command at PACOM on July 13. The two sides engaged in an extensive exchange of views on ways to further strengthen the already firm ROK-US combined defense posture in order to protect the ROK and safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula from North Korea, the gravest threat in the region.


* unofficial translation