The top diplomats of the United States, Japan and South Korea will hold trilateral talks in Atlanta on Friday and sign a memorandum of cooperation on a new Trilateral Arctic-Pacific Partnership, South Korea's foreign ministry said, according to Yonhap news agency.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun will meet at 4:40 p.m. US time on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers' meeting, the US State Department said in a message to reporters cited by Yonhap, with the signing ceremony for the Arctic-Pacific Partnership memorandum set for 5:10 p.m.
Source: Yonhap
North Korea at the centre of the talks
The three ministers are expected to assess North Korea's latest missile launches and the closer ties between Pyongyang and Beijing following North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's recent visit to China, and to discuss how to coordinate their responses, South Korean officials said.
Energy and economic security cooperation are also expected to feature. On the Arctic side, the three countries are seeking to expand cooperation as the region grows in commercial and strategic importance — including Arctic shipping, maritime safety, shipbuilding technology and energy resources, Yonhap reported.
Rubio first announced the Trilateral Arctic-Pacific Partnership on 21 September in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. Friday's ceremony in Atlanta is the signing of its memorandum of cooperation — the step that turns the announcement into a formal working partnership.
The three ministers last met in New York in September, where they reaffirmed their commitment to the complete denuclearisation of North Korea and urged Pyongyang to return to dialogue, while stressing that the path to talks remains open.
Cho is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with counterparts from several partner countries, including European nations, on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Atlanta, South Korea's foreign ministry said.