U.S.-ROK-Japan Trilateral Meeting on Shared North Korea-Related Challenges

Office of the Spokesperson

The Biden Administration is committed to strengthening U.S. alliance relationships, particularly with our key Northeast Asian allies Japan and the Republic of Korea. As part of this effort, and against the backdrop of the Biden Administration’s ongoing North Korea policy review, representatives from the United States, Japan, and the Republic of Korea (ROK) held the first trilateral meeting of the Biden Administration to exchange views on shared North Korea-related challenges. Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Sung Kim met via videoconference with the Republic of Korea Ministry of Foreign Affairs Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Noh Kyu-duk and Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General for Asian and Oceanian Affairs Takehiro Funakoshi on February 18.

Acting Assistant Secretary Kim expressed appreciation to Director General Funakoshi and Special Representative Noh for continued partnership in Northeast Asia and the larger Indo-Pacific region. The group discussed the ongoing U.S. DPRK policy review and stressed the importance of continued close cooperation and coordination. They each shared their assessments of the current situation in North Korea and expressed their continued commitment to denuclearization and the maintenance of peace and stability on the Korean peninsula.