US eyes meeting with Japan and South Korea amid heightened tensions with North Korea
- Diplomatic sources said on Sunday that the foreign ministers from the respective countries could meet in January
The United States is arranging a meeting with foreign ministers from Japan and South Korea next month to coordinate steps to deal with North Korea and its increasingly provocative rhetoric, diplomatic sources said Sunday.
The move comes amid speculation that North Korea may test-fire intercontinental ballistic missiles or take other threatening actions at a time when denuclearisation talks with the United States have stalled. Pyongyang set a year-end deadline for Washington to reconsider its approach to negotiations.
North Korea’s next step may lead the administration of US President Donald Trump to take a tougher approach, with some officials calling for a return to applying “maximum pressure” on the North.
The United States pursued the maximum pressure campaign before the start of summit diplomacy between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un last year.
According to the sources, UN Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his Japanese and South Korean counterparts Toshimitsu Motegi and Kang Kyung Wha may meet in San Francisco in mid-January. Such a three-way meeting has not been held since August.