1. During his visit to New York to attend the 71st session of the UN General Assembly, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se met bilaterally with Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan on September 18. In their meeting, the two top diplomats mainly discussed ways to respond to North Korea’s fifth nuclear test and for the Republic of Korea and Japan to coordinate on this issue. In addition, they briefly exchanged views on the relations between their two countries and ways to work together on the international stage.

2. The two Ministers expressed grave concern over the fact that in defiance of repeated warnings from the international community, North Korea is unprecedentedly escalating its threats by engaging in more frequent and intense provocations than ever, including two nuclear tests and launches of various types of ballistic missiles in 2016.

° The two Ministers took note of close coordination between the ROK and Japan in the wake of North Korea’s fifth nuclear test, including through telephone conversations between their leaders and between themselves. They agreed to actively seek ways to enforce tough, across-the-board sanctions and intensify pressure on North Korea, including the Security Council’s additional sanction, based on the ROK-US-Japan coordination and in cooperation with the international community, including China and Russia.

3. The two Ministers briefly exchanged views on the thorough implementation of the ROK-Japan agreement on the “comfort women” issue concluded on December 28, 2015, as well as holding an ROK-Japan-China summit meeting in 2016.


* unofficial translation