S. Korea discusses upcoming NPT review meeting with Britain, EU

A foreign ministry official has held separate video talks with his counterparts from Britain and the European Union (EU) to discuss an upcoming conference on the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the ministry said Thursday.

Park Il, director general for nonproliferation and nuclear affairs, spoke via video links Tuesday with Samantha Job, director for defense and international security at Britain's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the ministry said.

He also had video talks with Marjolijn Van Deelen, EU special envoy for nonproliferation and disarmament, on Wednesday.

The talks focused on preparations for a successful opening of the NPT Review Conference slated for this August, after it was postponed last year due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Last year marked the 50th anniversary of the signing of the NPT, a multilateral treaty aimed at preventing the spread of nuclear weapons and promoting peaceful use of nuclear energy. The review conference is held every five years to check the countries' implementations of NPT commitments.

In the talks, Park agreed with his British and EU counterparts on the need to continue close cooperation to achieve a substantial outcome in the review conference to strengthen the NPT framework.

He also called for continued support from both sides for Korea's efforts toward advancing the peace process on the peninsula, according to the ministry. (Yonhap)