South, U.S. and Japan's envoys discuss North's ICBM launch

North Korea

Published: 20 Jul. 2023, 18:09

South, U.S. and Japan's envoys discuss North's ICBM launch

From right, Kim Gunn, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs; Funakoshi Takehiro, director-general for Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau of Japanese Foreign Ministry; and Sung Kim, the U.S. special representative for North Korea, meet in Nagano, Japan, on Thursday to discuss the trilateral response to North Korea's continued military provocations and development of nuclear weapons. [MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS]

The top nuclear negotiators of South Korea, the United States and Japan met in Nagano on Thursday to discuss North Korea's latest intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test.

“We will talk about ways to effectively counter North Korea’s continued provocations,” said Kim Gunn, South Korea’s special representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs, in speaking with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts Sung Kim and Takehiro Funakoshi.

“We will cut its illicit revenue streams that fund its WMD [weapons of mass destruction] and ballistic missile programs,” he said. “Repatriating North Korean overseas workers and clamping down on malicious cyber activities are at the top of our list. We will also look for further actions we can take to close the loopholes in the North Korea sanctions regime.”

The trilateral nuclear envoys’ meeting, last held in person in Seoul in April, followed closely the North’s continued military provocations. Pyongyang fired an ICBM on July 12, following it up with further tests of two short-range missiles into the East Sea a week later.

The North’s “nuclear obsession” has only undermined its own security, Kim said.

“Kim Jong-un thought that by heightening threats of a nuclear attack, he will gain respect and have things his way,” he said. “However, instead of being intimidated or conceding, the ROK and the United States have upgraded the alliance through the Washington Declaration.”

Washington and Seoul held their inaugural meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group, a bilateral consultative body created to strengthen extended deterrence, earlier this week.

Kim also addressed recent comments by the North Korean leader’s powerful sister, Kim Yo-jong, that implicitly threatened to shoot down U.S. military planes in the region.

“Recent remarks by Kim Yo-jong show North Korea’s anxiety in the face of the strong international resolve,” said the South Korean nuclear envoy.

Seoul has been levying sanctions on individuals and organizations tied to the North’s illicit cyber activities funding its nuclear and missiles program since last October. It sanctioned a total of 49 individuals and 50 organizations as of this month, including top North Korean officials such as Jong Kyong-thaek, director of the general political bureau of the North’s Korean People’s Army.

Kim also warned that the North’s human rights violations will be continued to be closely scrutinized by members of the United Nations Security Council, especially since South Korea, Japan and the United States will be represented at the council next year.

BY ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]