S.Korea, US agree to launch working-level dialogue channel

Seoul, Sep 12 (IANS) South Korea and the US have agreed to launch a working-level dialogue channel to regularly discuss issues of mutual concern, the Foreign Ministry in Seoul said.South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-kun held talks in Washington on Thursday with US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun to make a broad discussion on the bilateral relations, the Korean Peninsula issues and regional situations, Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry as saying on Friday.The two diplomats shared the need to set up a new director general-level dialogue channel, tentatively named the 'Alliance Dialogue', to regularly review and cooperate on the issues of mutual concern, it added.Choi and Biegun shared their assessment on the Korean Peninsula situations, agreeing to closely cooperate for the rapid resumption of talks between the South North and between Pyongayng and Washington.Choi told Biegun to actively cooperate with each other to diplomatically support the permanent peace settlement on the Korean Peninsula. Biegun expressed his support for the South Korean government's efforts to improve inter-Korean relations.Denuclearization talks between Pyongyang and Washington have been stalled since the second summit between North Korea's Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump ended with no agreement in February 2019 at the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi.
--IANS ksk/