U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Takehiro Funakoshi and South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo (from L to R) pose for a photo ahead of their trilateral talks in Tokyo on July 18, 2025. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
TOKYO/SEOUL, July 18 (Korea Bizwire) – Senior diplomats of South Korea, the United States and Japan reaffirmed their commitment to advancing trilateral cooperation, as the three sides held talks in Tokyo on Friday.
First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo was joined by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and their Japanese counterpart, Takehiro Funakoshi, for the first such talks since the launch of the Lee Jae Myung government and the second Donald Trump administration.
Friday’s meeting follows the three-way dialogue that took place among Park, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya on the sidelines of ASEAN-related foreign ministers meetings in Malaysia last week.
Recalling the meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Park stressed that trilateral cooperation among the three nations is expanding beyond a single field to encompass security, the economy and technology.
Park noted that the three countries have much to achieve together in the years ahead, adding that they share the responsibility to turn the potential of their cooperation into tangible outcomes.
Landau emphasized the importance of the trilateral partnership for the United States, expressing hope that the cooperation will continue to deepen on the solid groundwork laid by the countries’ predecessors.
Funakoshi said the trilateral cooperation carries its significance more than ever amid the increasingly severe security environment caused by North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile threats.
He said the three sides will discuss issues, including joint trilateral military exercises and economic security, as well as the North’s malicious cyber activities and missile development.
On the margins of the trilateral talks, Park was expected to meet one-on-one with Landau and Funakoshi separately.
The last vice foreign ministers’ meeting among the three countries took place in Seoul in October last year.
(Yonhap)