“Secretary Mattis reaffirmed the unchangingly solid South Korea-U.S. alliance and said he will have close advance cooperation in the frame of the alliance with regard to the response to the North Korean (nuclear) issue,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said following a roughly hour-long meeting between Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and the U.S. secretary. (Image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Oct. 27 (Korea Bizwire) – United States Secretary of Defense James Mattis committed to close cooperation with South Korea in advance of any possible action against North Korea, during his talks with South Korea’s top diplomat, the foreign ministry said.
“Secretary Mattis reaffirmed the unchangingly solid South Korea-U.S. alliance and said he will have close advance cooperation in the frame of the alliance with regard to the response to the North Korean (nuclear) issue,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said following a roughly hour-long meeting between Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and the U.S. secretary.
The talks came after Mattis visited the inter-Korean military buffer of the Demilitarized Zone and stressed that the U.S. does not want war with North Korea, but its complete and verifiable denuclearization.
Kang lauded the countries’ robust combined defense posture and deterrence capability against North Korean nuclear and missile threats.
“Minister Kang stressed the importance of the two countries working closely together to sternly respond to North Korean provocations and manage the Korean Peninsula’s condition stably,” the ministry noted.
She also asked for Mattis’ cooperation in successfully hosting President Donald Trump’s South Korean state visit slated for Nov. 7-8. Mattis pledged his active help with the trip.
The top officials also agreed to continue their close collaboration down the road, especially through the regular meeting of the two countries’ foreign and defense ministers, according to the ministry.
(Yonhap)
