Foreign minister: Seoul, Washington aligned on North Korea, denuclearization goal stands
In short
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told a National Assembly audit that South Korea and the United States have an aligned North Korea policy stance and that the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula will be maintained. He said Seoul is pursuing a step-by-step, practical approach toward halting, reducing and dismantling North Korea's nuclear capability, and is coordinating with China and Russia while pressing Moscow over North Korea-Russia military cooperation.
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Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said South Korea and the United States have an aligned North Korea policy stance and will maintain the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, speaking at a National Assembly audit of the foreign ministry on Tuesday. Cho said the two countries' aligned policy line and will to cooperate had been confirmed on several occasions during summit meetings, according to Yonhap. Newsis reported the same message in its headline, saying the denuclearization goal is unshaken and that Seoul will coordinate with Washington. [ 1 , 2 ]
Cho said the government would hold to the denuclearization goal while pursuing a step-by-step and practical approach that leads to halting, reducing and dismantling North Korea's nuclear capability, and that he would keep developing such a plan based on close coordination with the United States. He said Seoul and Washington have been consulting closely to bring North Korea back to dialogue, and that Seoul would keep working to draw constructive roles from China and Russia on the basis of the South Korea-U.S. alliance and South Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation. [ 1 ]
On China, Cho said Seoul will pursue high-level South Korea-China exchanges around the APEC summit in Shenzhen in November, and will manage sensitive issues such as Taiwan and the West Sea so they do not obstruct the development of bilateral ties. On Russia, he said Seoul continues the communication it needs, explaining its North Korea policy while conveying serious concerns over continuing North Korea-Russia military cooperation and calling for it to stop. [ 1 ]
Cho also addressed the diplomatic friction with Ukraine over North Korean prisoners of war, saying that clarifying the facts of undisclosed bilateral agreements is essential to developing relations between the two countries, and that Seoul will consistently pursue a response based on principles through diplomatic communication. [ 1 ]
Turning to Washington, Cho said much attention is focused on the U.S. midterm elections in early November, and that the foreign ministry will closely watch the results and work to further expand support for the South Korea-U.S. alliance in the U.S. Congress. [ 1 ]
Why it matters
The minister's remarks set out Seoul's public position on North Korea policy at a parliamentary audit, tying denuclearization steps to coordination with Washington, and adding that Seoul will watch November's U.S. midterm elections and work to widen support in Congress. They also signal continued engagement with China around the APEC summit in Shenzhen and continued pressure on Russia over military cooperation with Pyongyang.
Key facts
- Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said South Korea and the United States share an aligned North Korea policy stance, confirmed at multiple summit meetings. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Cho said the government will hold to the denuclearization goal and pursue a step-by-step, practical approach toward halting, reducing and dismantling North Korea's nuclear capability. [ 1 ]
- He said Seoul and Washington have been consulting closely to bring North Korea back to dialogue. [ 1 ]
- Cho said Seoul will pursue high-level South Korea-China exchanges around the APEC summit in Shenzhen in November and manage sensitive issues including Taiwan and the West Sea. [ 1 ]
- He said Seoul has conveyed serious concerns to Russia over continuing North Korea-Russia military cooperation and called for it to stop. [ 1 ]
- On North Korean prisoners of war, Cho said clarifying the facts of undisclosed bilateral agreements is important for relations with Ukraine, and that Seoul will respond through diplomatic communication on the basis of principles. [ 1 ]
- Cho said the foreign ministry will watch the results of November's U.S. midterm elections and work to expand support for the alliance in the U.S. Congress. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said South Korea and the United States share an aligned North Korea policy stance and will maintain the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Cho said the government will keep the denuclearization goal while pursuing a step-by-step, practical approach toward halting, reducing and dismantling North Korea's nuclear capability. [ 1 ]
- Cho said Seoul continues close consultations with Washington for North Korea's return to dialogue, and will draw constructive roles from China and Russia on the basis of the South Korea-U.S. alliance and South Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation. [ 1 ]
Still unclear
- Whether any resumption of dialogue with North Korea has been scheduled, and in what format. The documents say consultations are continuing but give no timing, venue or concrete steps.
- What the undisclosed bilateral agreements at issue with Ukraine over North Korean prisoners of war contain. Cho said clarifying the facts is important for relations with Ukraine but the documents do not describe the agreements or the dispute.
- The full details of Newsis's report on the minister's remarks. Only the Newsis headline was available; the article text carried in the document concerns a separate Supreme Court audit story.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Yonhap reports Foreign Minister Cho Hyun's remarks at the National Assembly foreign affairs and unification committee audit. [ 1 ]
- Newsis reports the minister said the denuclearization goal is unshaken and that Seoul will coordinate with Washington and draw constructive roles from China and Russia. [ 2 ]
- U.S. midterm elections are scheduled, and the APEC summit is to be held in Shenzhen, which Cho said Seoul will use to pursue high-level South Korea-China exchanges. [ 1 ]