Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun held a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, on Wednesday, February 4, in Washington, D.C., during his visit to the United States to attend a Critical Minerals Ministerial. The two sides discussed the implementation of the ROK-U.S. Joint Fact Sheet and ways to strengthen nuclear cooperation between the two countries.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to make concrete progress as soon as possible regarding cooperation in enrichment and reprocessing, as well as nuclear-powered submarines as outlined in the Joint Fact Sheet. To this end, they agreed to promptly pursue consultations at the working level.

Minister Cho expressed his expectation that expanded cooperation in the fields of enrichment and reprocessing would lead to a stronger strategic nuclear partnership between Korea and the United States. On that note, he requested the U.S. side’s attention and cooperation in this regard. In response, Secretary Wright committed to actively cooperate for tangible results, and both sides agreed to maintain close communication.

Furthermore, the two sides took note of the currently ongoing active cooperation between nuclear power companies of both countries. They agreed to continue close communication and cooperation to facilitate private-sector nuclear collaboration, including joint entries into third-country markets.