1. Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha had a telephone conversation with Secretary of State of the United States (U.S.) Michael R. Pompeo for around 15 minutes from 23:45, July 10 (Korea Standard Time), during the visit to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Over the phone, the two sides exchanged views on various matters of mutual interest, such as the outcome of President Donald Trump’s visit to the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the regional situation, including issues concerning the Korean Peninsula and the ROK-Japan relations.

2. Minister Kang and Secretary Pompeo noted with appreciation that President Trump’s visit to the ROK on June 29-30 had been successful, as the two countries had reaffirmed their stronger-than-ever alliance, and a historic meeting among the leaders of the ROK, the U.S. and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) had taken place at Panmunjeom, paving the way for U.S.-DPRK working-level negotiations. The Minister and the Secretary agreed to continue close communication and cooperation at various levels in order to achieve the shared goals -- the development of the ROK-U.S. alliance as well as complete denuclearization and the establishment of permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula.

3. During the telephone conversation, Minister Kang stressed that the ROK government has maintained the will to advance its relations with Japan in a future-oriented manner under a two-track policy. The Minister mentioned that Japan’s trade-restrictive measures could not only hurt Korean enterprises but also disrupt the global supply chain and thereby have negative impact on the global trade order as well as U.S. companies. She went on to express concern that this is not desirable for the friendly and cooperative relations between the ROK and Japan as well as trilateral cooperation among the ROK, the U.S. and Japan.
 

4. Minister Kang also mentioned that the ROK government hopes that Japan would withdraw the measures and the situation would not deteriorate further, and intends to make efforts to seek a diplomatic resolution through dialogue with Japan.

° Secretary Pompeo expressed his understanding in this regard, and the Minister and the Secretary agreed to continue working closely together in a bid to strengthen communication between the ROK and the U.S. as well as among the ROK, the U.S. and Japan through diplomatic channels at various levels.

 
5. The Minister and the Secretary agreed to meet again at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, which will take place in Bangkok on August 1-3, and continue to exchange views on matters of mutual interest, including the North Korean nuclear issue and ways to advance the ROK-U.S. alliance.

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* unofficial translation