Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Park Du-sun holds a regular briefing at the ministry's offices in Government Complex Seoul, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Park Du-sun holds a regular briefing at the ministry's offices in Government Complex Seoul, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday that "both South Korea and the United States still aim for the complete denuclearization of North Korea," pushing back against concerns that Washington may pursue negotiations with Pyongyang that tolerate its nuclear program.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Du-sun made the remarks at a briefing Tuesday in response to questions about why the word "denuclearization" was absent from the ministry's readout of a recent phone call between the two countries' foreign ministers. "South Korea and the United States consistently uphold the goals of peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and denuclearization, as stated in the joint fact sheet from the South Korea-US summit last November," Park said.

Park added that the two allies were "pursuing North Korea policy in close coordination to achieve those goals, and the relevant discussions also took place during this phone call between the foreign ministers."

He also said that denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula "is a position consistently maintained between South Korea and the United States, and also a consistent goal of the international community as confirmed by numerous UN Security Council resolutions." The government, he said, "will continue its efforts to achieve meaningful progress on peace on the Korean Peninsula and the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue in close coordination with the international community."

The remarks came after Foreign Minister Cho Hyun spoke by phone with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday, with the two ministers agreeing to maintain close communication and coordination on peace on the Korean Peninsula and the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue. The Foreign Ministry's readout of the call drew attention for omitting the word "denuclearization" — a term typically included when senior South Korean and US officials discuss the North Korean nuclear issue. The State Department's readout went further, making no mention of denuclearization or even North Korea itself, saying only that the two ministers "discussed a range of issues related to the alliance" and that Rubio "noted the need for both countries to maintain close coordination on matters essential to the alliance."


yg@heraldcorp.com