1. On November 6, Director-General for North American Affairs Ko Yunju met with Mr. Marc Knapper, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Korea at the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs of the United States Department of State, who was on a visit to the Republic of Korea, and discussed matters of mutual interest, including current bilateral issues and regional situation.

° The two sides reviewed the progress in the preparations for a successful visit to the U.S. by Minister Kang Kyung-wha, which is scheduled for next week, and discussed ways to advance regional cooperation between the ROK and the U.S., including cooperation between the ROK’s New Southern Policy and the U.S.’ Indo-Pacific Strategy.

° The two sides exchanged views on the way forward of the director-general-level consultative mechanism (tentatively called “Alliance Dialogue”) based on their discussion during Director-General Ko’s visit to the U.S. in October.

2. Director-General Ko and Deputy Assistant Secretary Knapper, officials in charge of practical affairs related to the ROK-U.S. relations, agreed to continue close strategic communication regardless of domestic political events and manage current bilateral issues in a stable manner.