South Korea, U.S., Japan, China to hold relay of meetings in Washington

South Korean First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Hong-kyun speaks to reporters upon arrival at Dulles Airport near Washington on Thursday. [YONHAP]

As tensions on the Korean Peninsula increased recently due to North Korea’s launch of spy satellites and deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow, South Korea, the United States, Japan and China will hold bilateral and trilateral discussions in Washington.

South Korean First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Hong-kyun will meet with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Japanese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Masataka Okano on Friday local time in Washington, and will also hold bilateral discussions with Campbell and Okano separately.

At the first trilateral vice-ministerial meeting held in a year and three months, the officials will discuss response measures regarding North Korea’s failed spy satellite launch on Monday, the feces-filled balloons sent to South Korea on Wednesday and the strengthening North Korea-Russia military cooperation.

In addition, the results of the South Korea-Japan-China trilateral summit held in Seoul on Monday will also be shared between South Korea, the United States and Japan during the vice-ministerial meeting.

Meanwhile, China will dispatch Deputy Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu to the United States from Friday to next Sunday to hold bilateral discussions with Campbell.

Amid sharp disagreements between the South Korea-U.S.-Japan alliance and the North Korea-China-Russia camp over how to denuclearize North Korea, the meeting is expected to reaffirm the desirability of denuclearization and explore potentials for diplomacy to play a role.

Previously, at the South Korea-Japan-China summit, the different positions of the three countries were exposed, such as the failure to specify North Korea’s denuclearization as a common goal in the resulting joint declaration.

In this round of South Korea-U.S.-Japan and U.S.-China vice-ministerial discussions, differences in positions are expected to remain between South Korea, the United States, Japan and China, as China is likely to emphasize “resolving security concerns felt by North Korea.” In particular, it will be noted whether a consensus will be formed on the need for basic cooperation to prevent the situation on the Korean Peninsula from worsening.

“This vice-ministerial meeting is the first trilateral meeting of the three countries since the Camp David summit last August,” said Kim to reporters upon entering the United States through Dulles Airport near Washington. “We plan to have intensive and long discussions on ways to further deepen and expand cooperation between South Korea, the United States and Japan."

“The three countries had immediate discussions regarding North Korea’s launch of a spy satellite, and each issued a statement condemning the launch,” continued Kim. “So we will discuss the subsequent developments in North Korea and how the three countries will respond if Pyongyang launches additional satellites or missiles in the future.”

Kim also noted that South Korea, the United States and Japan share a common viewpoint that China’s role is important in the Korean Peninsula issue and the North Korean nuclear issue, and added that the vice ministers will discuss how to further bring up China’s participation during the discussion this time.

In addition, regarding the issue of securing an alternative body to oversee sanctions against North Korea due to the dismantling of the UN Security Council’s panel of experts resulting from Russia’s veto, Kim said discussions have already begun, and that the matter will also be discussed during the vice-ministerial meeting.

“We will discuss how to strengthen our security posture in regard to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, including the launch of the spy satellite and military cooperation with Russia,” Kim said, adding that the agenda of bilateral consultations will also include sharing the results of the South Korea-Japan-China summit.

When asked if the bilateral meeting between South Korea and Japan would discuss the recent Line Yahoo issue, Kim said that while the ministers will focus on how to cooperate in trilateral consultations, “we will, of course, touch on such issues.”

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]