Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul speaks during a press conference for foreign media at the Korea Press Center in central Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul pledged to create a roadmap and strategies to proactively prepare for potential bilateral negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang, ahead of Donald Trump's inauguration as U.S. president in January.

Cho made these remarks at a joint press conference with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok for foreign media on Wednesday. The event was organized to address concerns from the international community and demonstrate South Korea's commitment to stabilizing and normalizing its foreign relations and economy, amid ongoing domestic political turmoil following President Yoon Suk Yeol's sudden martial law declaration and subsequent impeachment.

"Before the new U.S. administration takes office, the Korean government will establish its response strategies and roadmaps to proactively prepare for the potential of U.S.–North Korea negotiations," Cho said.

His remarks were in response to concerns that, with the president potentially absent for months, South Korea could be sidelined if Trump seeks to engage with North Korea, given that the incoming U.S. leader is known to prefer top-down approaches in diplomacy.

Cho highlighted that Trump's recent nomination of Richard Grenell as the presidential envoy for special missions, including North Korea, signaled the new administration's readiness to actively engage with North Korea on nuclear issues.

"This demonstrates that President-elect Trump has not excluded North Korea, particularly the nuclear issue, from his list of priority tasks, and we interpret it as an indicator that he will address the North Korean issue seriously after his inauguration," Cho said.

Cho also emphasized that South Korea remains open to all possibilities for negotiations on the nuclear issue with the North. He emphasized that past failures in inter-Korean talks were "a result of Pyongyang's refusal to engage, not Seoul's rejection."

"Seoul interprets the appointment of the special envoy as a signal that Trump does not intend to neglect the North Korean nuclear issue. Therefore, I think the South Korean government must respond proactively to these issues," he added.

Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, right, speaks during a joint press conference with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok at the Korea Press Center in central Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

Enhanced communication with key allies

Cho also emphasized that South Korea's foreign policy direction, which is based on fulfilling roles and responsibilities commensurate with the country's national power and status, will remain unchanged under acting President Han Duck-soo.

He reaffirmed that South Korea will steadfastly uphold the Korea-U.S. alliance and proactively work to preserve the momentum of trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the U.S., and Japan.

"The Korean government is maintaining a robust security posture based on a strong South Korea-U.S. alliance. We will manage Korean Peninsula affairs in a stable manner, while remaining as ready as ever to respond firmly in the event of North Korea's provocations," Cho said.

"Our government will maintain a steadfast ROK-U.S. alliance and friendly cooperation with Japan, and ensure that the momentum for trilateral cooperation is sustained." he added.

While Seoul is committed to further advancing Korea-Japan relations, marking the 60th anniversary of the two neighboring countries' diplomatic ties next year, Cho emphasized that the Korean government also intends "to maintain close consultations with China in order to stably manage and further advance bilateral relations."

He also assured that foreign visitors to the country will be safe.

"No doubt you are aware of Korea's healthy public safety record. I ask that you relay back home and to the international audience that Koreans and the 2.7 million expats in this country are going about their daily lives as usual under stable and orderly conditions and that Korea is a completely safe place to visit," he said.

Cho also expressed his personal shock at the president's sudden martial law declaration, but he remains confident that Korea's mature democracy will continue to demonstrate the country's democratic resilience and the well-functioning rule of law.

"The last time martial law was imposed in Korea was in 1979, when I joined the foreign ministry. Never did I imagine that it would be declared again 45 years later, in the Korea of 2024 ... Thanks to a firmly-ingrained determination in Korea's collective spirit to never see the mistakes from dark chapters in our history repeated, our democracy was upheld, the democratic process eventually functioned as it should under the Constitution, and order and stability were preserved," he said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok speaks during a press conference at the Korea Press Center in central Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

Regarding the economy, Choi stressed that the government will remain vigilant in managing the economy as stably as possible, given ongoing market fluctuations and the potential for a downturn in economic sentiment due to both domestic and external uncertainties.

"Although we are facing unexpected difficulties, I am certain that our sound and resilient economic system will bring stability swiftly," Choi said.

He noted that, despite the political situation, economic policies are being implemented through cooperation among the ruling and opposition parties, as well as the government, with the national budget and key tax bills being passed. Additionally, he shared that recent assessments by three major global credit rating agencies indicated that the current political situation has a limited impact on South Korea's credit rating.

"Above all, we will focus on managing our external credibility. We will continue operating a 24-hour monitoring system for the financial and foreign exchange markets, strengthen incentives for foreign investment and enhance the international community's understanding of the strong fundamentals of the Korean economy," he said.