From left, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul pose for a photo at their trilateral talks in New York, Sept. 23, in this photo provided by the foreign ministry in Seoul. Yonhap
The top diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan have reaffirmed their commitment to establishing a trilateral cooperation secretariat, to be finalized when their leaders meet later this year, a State Department spokesperson said.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa met trilaterally on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Monday, reiterating their efforts to "institutionalize" the three-way partnership.
Their emphasis on cementing cooperation among their countries came amid lingering questions over whether their trilateral partnership can endure regardless of political transitions in Washington and Tokyo.
"They concluded by reaffirming our shared commitment to creating the U.S.-Japan-ROK Trilateral Secretariat, to be finalized by the three leaders when they meet before the end of the year," Matthew Miller, the spokesperson, said in a readout, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.
"This step will help institutionalize this crucial partnership into the future," he added.
Seoul, Washington and Tokyo have been working on establishing the secretariat to maintain forward momentum for their growing cooperation on security, technology and other areas.
During their talks, Cho, Blinken and Kamikawa also discussed the need for close coordination to respond to deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow, which they believe threatens stability in both Northeast Asia and Europe, according to Miller.
In addition, they affirmed their "strong" opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific, and reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait as an "indispensable" element of security and prosperity in the international community, Miller said.
The meeting took place as Seoul, Washington and Tokyo have been deepening their collaboration to counter threats from North Korea, which has heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula with its recent disclosure of a uranium enrichment facility, continued weapons tests and launches of trash-carrying balloons into the South.
The three sides expressed concerns over the North's unveiling of the uranium enrichment facility and its expanding illegal military cooperation with Russia, Seoul's foreign ministry said in a press release Tuesday (Korea time).
"They agreed to continue close coordination to lead efforts to implement U.N. Security Council resolutions while responding sternly to any provocations from Pyongyang," the ministry said.
In his opening remarks, Blinken said that trilateral cooperation will continue to remain crucial regardless of leadership changes in the U.S. and Japan.
"We have political transitions in Japan and the United States, but this trilat, irrespective of those transitions, will remain vital to the future of all three of our countries — a future that we are working to shape together," he said, according to a transcript released by the State Department. Trilat is short for a trilateral gathering.
From left, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visit Camp David for a trilateral leader's summit in Washington, D.C., Aug. 19, 2023. Yonhap
He cast the trilateral relationship as one of the "hallmarks" of President Joe Biden's administration, saying that it is "stronger," "more effective" and "more important" than it has ever been given the challenges and opportunities that the three countries face.
Cho said that the trilateral gathering demonstrated their common resolve to cooperate "closely" and respond "steadfastly" to any provocation by the North. He also underscored that three-way cooperation remains "unwavering" regardless of domestic political changes.
"Since the historic Camp David summit in August last year, we have made tremendous achievements in our trilateral cooperation, and I think at all levels and in many areas," Cho said.
He was referring to the first standalone trilateral summit at Camp David in Maryland in August last year. It produced a series of landmark agreements, including the "Commitment to Consult" in the event of a shared threat.
Kamikawa also underscored the importance of trilateral security cooperation in the midst of regional and global security challenges.
"The security environment surrounding us is becoming increasingly severe, and the free and open international order based on the rule of law is facing serious challenges, and that is making our strategic collaboration more important than ever," she said.
"We would like to further strengthen our coordination in dealing with North Korea and in a wide range of fields."
Three-way cooperation among the U.S. and its Asian allies gained traction after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol offered a solution in March last year to address the issue of compensating Korean victims of Japan's colonial-era forced labor.
On the back of warming ties between Seoul and Tokyo, the three countries have bolstered security cooperation through joint exercises, the sharing of ballistic missile warning data and other efforts. (Yonhap)