1. US Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken will visit the Republic of Korea from January 19 to 20.

o This visit to the ROK marks the third of its kind in about one year since his inauguration as Deputy Secretary of State. He will hold the ROK-US vice foreign ministerial meeting in Tokyo on January 16, and subsequently visit the ROK.

2. Deputy Secretary Blinken will meet with Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Lim Sung-nam. They are expected to focus their discussions on ways for the ROK and the US to work together in the aftermath of the latest nuclear test by North Korea.

o After the nuclear test by North Korea, the ROK and the US have discussed measures to respond to the test, including through telephone conversations between the leaders of the two countries, and between the foreign ministers of the two countries (January 7); a telephone conversation between the First Vice Minister and the Deputy Secretary (January 13); a meeting of the chief negotiators of the ROK, the US and Japan for the Six-Party Talks (January 13); and the ROK-US vice foreign ministerial meeting (January 16).

3. The forthcoming visit to the ROK by Deputy Secretary Blinken is expected to serve as an opportunity for the ROK and the US to further strengthen policy coordination to deal with the North Korean nuclear issue, based on the results of the previous consultations between the two countries.


*unofficial translation