1. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha held a telephone conversation with Secretary of State of the United States Mike Pompeo at 2:40-3:10 pm, March 1. Over the phone, the Minister was briefed in detail about the outcome of the second summit between the United States and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea held in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 28; and exchanged views with the Secretary on ways that the Republic of Korea and the United States could work together going forward.

2. Minister Kang, hailing the US government’s continued dialogue with patience with the DPRK despite their failure to reach agreement at the Hanoi summit, voiced hope that the US government would remain in close communication with the ROK government. Secretary Pompeo, strongly agreeing with the Minister on the need for close ROK-US coordination, expressed willingness to continue dialogue with the DPRK.

3. On that note, the Minister and the Secretary, recognizing the need to meet with each other in person as soon as possible to fine-tune possible next steps, including the ROK’s possible role, agreed to consult with each other, such as on the specific timing for a bilateral foreign ministerial meeting.

° In addition, the two sides agreed to continue close bilateral consultations at various levels, including by convening in the near future a consultation between their top negotiators on the North Korean nuclear issue for communication on relevant details.

4. The Minister and the Secretary, reaffirming the ironclad ROK-US alliance as an essential element for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia, agreed to hold consultations at various levels.

* unofficial translation