1. Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam met separately with US Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan and US Deputy National Security Adviser Ricky Waddell on January 17, local time, and exchanged views on issues of mutual interest, including the inter-Korean talks recently held, the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games, and the North Korean nuclear issue.

※ The meeting with Deputy National Security Adviser Waddell was attended by Vice Minister Lim and Vice Defense Minister Suh Choo-suk.

2. In the meetings, Vice Minister Lim explained the results of a series of inter-Korean talks recently held, and agreed to continue to closely work together to make sure that inter-Korean talks lead to dialogue on the denuclearization of North Korea.

o The ROK and US sides also shared the view that the Vancouver Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Security and Stability on the Korean Peninsula, attended by the ROK Foreign Minister and the US Secretary of State on January 16, contributed to strengthening the international community’s solidarity on the peaceful and diplomatic resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue through close cooperation between the ROK and the US.

3. Vice Minister Lim also welcomed the visit to the ROK by Vice President Mike Pence, who will lead a high-level US delegation to the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games. The two sides agreed to continue close consultations to make the Vice President’s visit to the ROK a success.

4. In his meeting with Deputy Secretary of State Sullivan, Vice Minister Lim reaffirmed the importance of strategic communications between the ROK and the US on bilateral and global issues. They agreed to work together to hold the ROK-US vice foreign ministerial strategic dialogue in the first half of the year.

5. Vice Minister Lim paid a courtesy call on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York on January 18, and stressed the UN’s roles in establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula. The Vice Minister will continue outreach activities geared towards people in the media, academics and former officials to strengthen the ROK’s public diplomacy towards the US.

* unofficial translation