The top diplomats of South Korea and the United States agreed Thursday to continue close coordination on issues related to North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, the State Department said.
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson spoke by phone earlier in the day to discuss North Korea and their countries' bilateral alliance, according to department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.
"The secretary told Foreign Minister Kang that the United States remains firmly and fully committed to the defense of the ROK and other allies in the region," she said during a press briefing.
ROK is the acronym of South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea.
"The leaders agreed to continue our close coordination in response to North Korea's destabilizing violations of U.N. Security Council resolutions and hold North Korea accountable for its unlawful actions. The two pledged to work closely together to strengthen U.S.-ROK cooperation, and they reaffirmed our joint commitment to a stable, peaceful and denuclearized Korean Peninsula," according to the spokeswoman.
Nauert also emphasized that Washington's policy toward the Koreas has not changed.
"The United States seeks a denuclearized Korean Peninsula. That is a priority that the United States shares not only with our regional partners such as the Republic of Korea in that phone call today, but also people from around the globe," she said. (Yonhap)