1. On November 13, Director-General for North American Affairs Ko Yunju met with Mr. Marc Knapper, Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs of the United States Department of State, who is on a visit to the Republic of Korea.

2. The two sides noted that there had been useful discussions during the ROK-U.S. Foreign Ministers’ Meeting this week. They also hoped that there would be in-depth discussions on various initiatives aimed at enhancing regional cooperation at the East Asia Summit (EAS) scheduled for November 14, and went on to discuss issues of mutual interest including cooperation between the ROK’s New Southern Policy and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy.

3. The two sides particularly took note that the governments of the two countries have made progress in substantive cooperation based on their commitment to cooperation between the ROK’s New Southern Policy and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy that was stated at the ROK-U.S. Summit in June last year, and as a result, they have released the second Fact Sheet on the achievements in cooperation between the New Southern Policy and the Indo-Pacific Strategy in the past year.

o The Fact Sheet, released for the second time following the first one issued in November last year, explains what progress has been made in substantial cooperation between the ROK’s New Southern Policy and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy since last year, and clearly shows that bilateral cooperation is underway in all the key areas of the New Southern Policy -- Prosperity, People, and Peace.

4. The two sides agreed to continue to advance cooperation between the two countries’ regional initiatives aimed at promoting regional peace and prosperity, based on the principles of openness, inclusiveness, and transparency.