Ministry of Foreign Affairs: "Blinken's Remarks Cannot Be Conclusively Seen as Negative Toward the Declaration of the End of the War"

[Asia Economy Reporter Inho Yoo] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that it cannot be concluded that U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken's recent remarks at the House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing expressed a negative view of the South Korean government's proposal for a declaration of the end of the war.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told reporters on the 12th that regarding Secretary Blinken's hearing response, "The United States is currently reviewing its North Korea policy and reiterated its position to closely consult with its ally South Korea during this process, nothing more and nothing less."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

At the hearing on the 10th (local time), Secretary Blinken was asked whether he thought it was time to officially end the Korean War, to which he replied, "Above all else, we must ensure that we are doing everything we can to advance the security of our allies and partners, starting with South Korea and Japan."

This led to interpretations that Secretary Blinken may have drawn a certain line regarding the declaration of the end of the war.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said, "We have continued to engage in dialogue with the U.S. side regarding the validity and strategic utility of the declaration of the end of the war," adding, "The U.S. government does not prejudge any specific issue and intends to fully listen to and consider the positions of its allies."

He further added, "Close cooperation between South Korea and the U.S. is taking place during the review of U.S. North Korea policy, and the review of North Korea policy will be an important agenda item at the upcoming South Korea-U.S. foreign ministers' meeting next week."

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