Senior diplomats of S. Korea, Japan discuss bilateral ties, N. Korea in Washington

Senior diplomats of South Korea and Japan have met in Washington to discuss bilateral relations and North Korea's recent launches of a military spy satellite and ballistic missiles, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday.

The 70-minute luncheon meeting took place between First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun and his Japanese counterpart, Masataka Okano, on Thursday, a day before they were to have trilateral talks with US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell.

The two condemned the North's botched launch of a military reconnaissance satellite and subsequent launches of multiple short-range ballistic missiles, making it clear that they pose serious threats to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and to the international community.

The two agreed to continue cooperation bilaterally and also trilaterally with the United States on the issue of abductees and detainees in North Korea.

The ministry said they also "exchanged opinions on pending bilateral issues," without giving further details, which suggests that they have likely talked about the row over Naver Corp.'s stake in the operator of the popular messenger Line in Japan.

They also agreed to continue to work closely to keep the momentum going for the trilateral cooperation with China, in the follow-up to the three-way leaders' summit that took place in Seoul earlier this week. (Yonhap)