Korean and US Deputy Assistant Secretaries of State Meet in Washington DC, Discuss Korea-US Issues and Regional Affairs for One Hour

Deputy Minister Kim Geon Holds Lunch with White House Advisor Hooker
"Agreed to Mutually Beneficial Development of Korea-US Relations and Strengthening of Alliance"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Kim Geon, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, met with David Stilwell, U.S. Department of State Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, to discuss regional situations and bilateral issues.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 4th, the meeting held on the 3rd (local time) at the State Department building in Washington DC was an introductory meeting between Deputy Minister Kim, who was appointed in December last year, and his partner Assistant Secretary Stilwell. For about an hour, mutual interests including the Korea-U.S. relationship, alliance issues, and regional situations related to both countries were broadly discussed.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "We agreed to expand and strengthen cooperation in various fields, including linking Korea's New Southern Policy with the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy," and added, "Both sides agreed to meet frequently on various occasions in the future to strive for the mutually beneficial development of the Korea-U.S. relationship and the strengthening of the alliance."

After the meeting with Assistant Secretary Stilwell, Deputy Minister Kim told reporters, "I came to hold consultations with my U.S. counterpart after my appointment," adding, "Since 2020 is a time to strengthen strategic communication between the two countries, this was a good opportunity. We laid the groundwork to achieve good results at the upcoming high-level talks."

Korea and the U.S. are coordinating schedules for a meeting between Minister Kang Kyung-wha and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in mid-month.

Regarding the Workers' Party plenary meeting in North Korea and the rapidly changing Middle East situation, he avoided direct answers. When asked about the recent U.S. perception of the Korean Peninsula situation, he said it was not appropriate to respond but mentioned, "It was a good start exchanging views on bilateral issues and perspectives on regional situations."

On North Korea's statements following the Workers' Party plenary meeting, he replied, "It is not within my jurisdiction, so it was not discussed intensively, and I have nothing to say." However, he added, "Both governments share the same view on developing and strengthening the Korea-U.S. alliance."

Regarding the heightened tensions in the Middle East due to the U.S. airstrike operation that eliminated a key Iranian military figure, he said, "We discussed the situation in the East Asian region led by the U.S. and also talked about Korea-U.S. bilateral issues." When asked about dispatching troops to the Strait of Hormuz, he responded, "There was no specific discussion."

Meanwhile, before the consultation with Assistant Secretary Stilwell, Deputy Minister Kim had lunch at the White House with Allison Hooker, Senior Director for Asia at the National Security Council (NSC), who is in charge of Korean Peninsula affairs, and discussed similar issues. Deputy Minister Kim will complete his remaining schedule and return home on the 4th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.