By Alex Jensen
SEOUL
South Korea and Japan put bilateral grudges aside Wednesday, as their chief North Korea envoys met with a United States counterpart in Seoul - and all three agreed to put more pressure on Pyongyang.
The North has been drawing added attention this month after claiming to have made bold advances with its weapons capabilities.
The reclusive state’s media announced a successful submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) test, and then claimed to have already developed the ability to miniaturize nuclear weapons - which, if true, would place even the U.S. within North Korea’s firing range.
Seoul’s foreign ministry revealed Tuesday that it had referred the North to a United Nations Security Council committee for breaching existing resolutions designed to curb Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions.
Wednesday’s three-way talks were the first of their kind in four months.
While Seoul-Tokyo ties have been strained over issues related to past Japanese aggression, Tokyo delegate Junichi Ihara told reporters that they shared a “sense of urgency” over North Korea.
“We agreed on the importance of enhancing pressure and sanctions,” U.S. representative Sung Kim also said at a briefing following their meeting.
Kim, a former ambassador to South Korea, insisted that the three sides should remain united with China and Russia in efforts to denuclearize the North - Beijing and Moscow are seen as Pyongyang’s main allies.
Speaking on behalf of Seoul, Hwang Joon-kook admitted that he and his counterparts recognized the “seriousness” of North Korea’s nuclear advancement - though there has been some debate in the U.S. over whether the North is even close to miniaturizing nuclear weapons or being able to test-fire a ballistic missile from a submarine.
