1. Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se met with former Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman of the US Department of State on October 10 and exchanged views with her on the Republic of Korea-United States relations and the North Korean nuclear issue.

2. Minister Yun, calling the close ROK-US coordination more important than ever in the current, grave security circumstance, noted that based on their steadfast alliance, the two countries are sending a tough message to North Korea. He added that the ROK and the US, at their forthcoming foreign and defense ministerial (2+2) meeting, will continue consulting on ways to steadily advance their alliance, asking for active support from former Under Secretary Sherman and the rest of the US in this regard.

° The former Under Secretary, calling the North Korean nuclear issue a very serious challenge, shared the Minister’s view that close coordination is necessary between the ROK and the US; and stated that she will play an active role for the ROK-US alliance to continue strengthening under the next US administration.

3. Minister Yun underscored the gravity of the North Korean nuclear issue and the urgency to address it with have become more apparent than ever before; the need to take extraordinary measures in order to induce North Korea to change its calculus; the need for a different approach from before to resolve the nuclear and other issues concerning North Korea, such as human rights violations, overseas slave labor and information black-out inside North Korea; and the need to continue efforts to intensify pressure and strengthen deterrence against the North within the “international community vs. North Korea” structure that has been established through close ROK-US coordination.

° In response, Under Secretary Sherman, also recognizing the need to toughen sanctions and intensify pressure on North Korea over its nuclear issue, pointed out that the ROK and the US should coordinate closely all available means in joint efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.

4. Minister Yun, bringing attention to mutual benefits from the KORUS (Korea-US) FTA, mentioned that the ROK-US alliance is developing into an alliance on issues concerning not only the Korean Peninsula and the region but also the global community. In particular, he noted with appreciation that the two countries are seeing a new horizon of cooperation opened in a wide range of fields, including climate change, refugees, gender equality, space and maritime security.

° Former Under Secretary Sherman, commenting that the ROK and the US are becoming essential partner for each other in not only security and economy but also various other areas, noted with appreciation that the ROK is exercising global leadership beyond Northeast Asia in such fields as democracy and cyber security.

5. Minister Yun’s meeting with former Under Secretary Sherman is seen to have served as an opportunity for the US to reaffirm its support on the need to intensify pressure and beef up deterrence against North Korea amid the grave security situation on the Korean Peninsula; and for the ROK to enhance its outreach to major opinion leaders as part of its public diplomacy activities toward the US.


* unofficial translation