As stated by Spokesperson Ned Price:
U.S. Special Representative for the DPRK Ambassador Sung Kim hosted Republic of Korea (ROK) Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Kim Gunn and Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General for Asian and Oceanian Affairs Funakoshi Takehiro in bilateral and trilateral meetings in Jakarta, Indonesia today to discuss U.S.-ROK-Japan cooperation in response to the DPRK's unprecedented number of unlawful ballistic missile launches this year, including eight ICBMs.
The officials shared assessments of the DPRK's recent actions and expressed concern about Pyongyang's continued flagrant disregard for UN Security Council resolutions. They also reviewed the synchronized trilateral release of sanctions targeting the DPRK in early December and emphasized the need to use all available tools to further limit the growth of the DPRK's destabilizing ballistic missile and nuclear programs. They underscored the need to raise greater global awareness of the DPRK's malicious cyber activities and its egregious record of human rights violations and abuses. The officials also called upon Pyongyang to immediately cease its unlawful and dangerous behavior and return to constructive dialogue to promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the region.
These meetings follow a trilateral leaders-level meeting between President Biden, President Yoon of the ROK and Prime Minister Kishida of Japan last month in Cambodia and underscore the close ongoing U.S. collaboration with the ROK and Japan on DPRK issues and the ironclad U.S. commitments to the security of our ROK and Japan allies.
