South Korea, US to Launch Formal Security Talks This Week

SEOUL, June 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States will launch formal negotiations this week to implement a set of security agreements reached between their leaders last year, the foreign ministry said Monday.

The inaugural two-day meeting for the negotiations will begin Tuesday at the foreign ministry in Seoul and focus on security-related items of the bilateral joint fact sheet published in November following a summit between President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump the previous month.

First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo will lead South Korea's delegation, which will include officials from the presidential office, as well as the defense, science and industry ministries, according to the foreign ministry.

The U.S. delegation, led by U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker, was scheduled to arrive in Seoul later Monday. The team reportedly includes officials from the White House National Security Council, the Department of State, the Department of Energy and other agencies.

The two sides are expected to discuss Seoul's push to build nuclear-powered submarines, secure uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing capabilities for peaceful use, as well as the expansion of shipbuilding cooperation between the two allies.

The joint fact sheet includes a range of commitments from both sides, including other security-related issues and Seoul's US$350 billion investment pledge to the U.S. in exchange for a reduced U.S. tariff rate.

The kickoff meeting had initially been expected to take place earlier this year but was delayed as Washington focused on other priorities, including the Middle East conflict, while also raising concerns over delays in Seoul's legislative process for its investment pledge and a probe into the South Korean affiliate of U.S.-listed e-commerce giant Coupang Inc. over a massive data breach, among other issues.

The visiting U.S. officials are expected to hold separate meetings with other senior Seoul officials, including Foreign Minister Cho Hyun.

"The stance shared by both sides is to start right into working-level consultations," a ministry official said when asked of the nature of this week's meeting.

Some observers expect the initial meeting to focus on exchanging positions on key issues and establishing a framework for future consultations, rather than producing concrete results.