1. Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, who is on a visit to Vientiane, Laos, for ASEAN-related foreign ministerial meetings, met bilaterally with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida on July 25. In their bilateral meeting, the two top diplomats exchanged views on matters of mutual concern, including the Republic of Korea-Japan relations and the North Korean nuclear issue.

2. At the beginning of the meeting, Minister Yun offered sympathy to Japan over the death of innocent Japanese in the terrorist attack in Bangladesh on July 1. Minister Kishida extended appreciation in response.

3. The two Ministers, calling the ROK-Japan agreement on the “comfort women” issue concluded in December 2015 a milestone for advancing the bilateral relations, agreed to continue joint efforts for a thorough implementation of the agreement.

° The two top diplomats agreed to hold director-general-level meetings and cooperate closely in other ways for an early launch of the foundation for rendering support to former “comfort women” and for a smooth implementation of its projects.

4. Minister Yun voiced hope that Japan will live up to its pledges to take follow-up measures to the inscription in July 2015 of its Meiji industrial sites on the World Heritage List. Minister Kishida responded that the Japanese government will take sincere steps.

5. The two Ministers shared concerns over the situation, where, in flagrant disregard of repeated warnings from the international community, North Korea has repeatedly been engaging in provocations, including numerous rounds of ballistic missile launches, and thereby posing a grave threat to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia. They agreed to concentrate their diplomatic efforts on reinforcing the momentum of sanctioning and pressuring North Korea in cooperation with the international community until North Korea changes its attitude and comes forward onto the path toward denuclearization.

° The two top diplomats agreed to continue working together for the international community to send to North Korea on the occasion of the ASEAN-related foreign ministerial meetings and various other upcoming multilateral events a clear and firm message of non-tolerance for a nuclear North Korea.

6. The two sides agreed to consult closely with each other for smooth progress in the ROK-Japan-China trilateral cooperation, the mechanism for which had been restored on track in 2015.

7. The two Ministers agreed to communicate more closely with each other on various occasions. Minister Kishida voiced hope that Minister Yun will visit Japan for an ROK-Japan-China foreign ministerial meeting.


* unofficial translation