South Korea, U.S. and Japan conduct a trilateral air force exercise in South Korea, April 2, in this photo provided by South Korea's defense ministry. Yonhap

Defense officials of South Korea, the United States and Japan condemned North Korea's purported satellite launch, ballistic missile tests and weapons transfers to Russia during their virtual talks this week, the three countries said Thursday.

South Korea's Deputy Defense Minister for Policy Cho Chang-rae, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner and Japan's Director General for Defense Policy Koji Kano attended the 14th Defense Trilateral Talks (DTT) on Wednesday.

"They condemned the DPRK's recent diversification of nuclear delivery systems, tests and launches of multiple ballistic missiles, the launch of what the DPRK purports to be a military reconnaissance satellite using ballistic missile technology, illicit ship-to-ship transfers, and arms shipments with Russia as clear violations of multiple U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions," they said in a joint statement.

DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The talks came as Pyongyang plans to launch multiple reconnaissance satellites this year despite international criticism that such launches run afoul of UNSC resolutions banning any launch using ballistic missile technology. It put its first spy satellite into orbit in November.

The officials reaffirmed that a North Korean nuclear test, if conducted, would be met with a "strong and resolute" response from the international community. They also urged Pyongyang to cease all "destabilizing" activities immediately.

But they reiterated that "the path to dialogue remains open toward peaceful and diplomatic resolution" with the North.

The three sides affirmed their commitment to redoubling efforts in support of "effective" sanctions implementation as they noted Russia's recent veto blocking the renewal of the mandate of a U.N. expert panel monitoring sanctions enforcement.

With the veto, the expert panel, seen as a crucial platform to ensure sanctions compliance, will cease to exist on Tuesday.

The officials acknowledged that the three countries' enhanced security cooperation contributes to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and across the Indo-Pacific region.

They also sent a message apparently intended for China.

"They emphasized the importance of the rule of law and expressed strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion. They ... stressed the importance of fully respecting freedom of navigation and overflight," they said,

"Additionally, they recognized that there is no change in their basic positions on Taiwan, and emphasized the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as an indispensable element of security and prosperity in the international community."

The officials agreed to hold the 15th DTT gathering later this year in South Korea. (Yonhap)