S. Korea's nuke envoy to join regional security meeting in Singapore

SEOUL, July 7 (Yonhap) -- The top nuclear envoy of South Korea will join a regional security conference to be held next week in Singapore, where he will discuss with his counterparts from the United States and Japan countermeasures against North Korea's recent missile provocation, the foreign ministry said Friday.

The Northeast Asia Cooperation Dialogue (NEACD) will kick off Tuesday for a two-day run. The informal security meeting is usually attended by officials and civilian experts from the states of the now suspended six-party talks aimed at denuclearizing North Korea.

"Kim Hong-kyun, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, will attend the 27th NEACD meeting," the ministry said in a text message sent to reporters. "He is to hold talks with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts, Joseph Yun and Kenji Kanasugi, during his stay there."

The meeting comes amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula after the North claimed Tuesday that it successfully carried out an intercontinental ballistic missile test.

The ministry said that the nuclear envoys are expected to discuss detailed measures against the North's latest provocation based on the cooperative momentum confirmed through recent meetings of their leaders in Germany.

The NEACD is an annual security forum regarded as the "Track 1.5" platform joined by North Korea, along with South Korea, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia.

North Korea joined the meeting last year by sending Choe Son-hui, who was working on North America affairs. But it has not been confirmed yet whether it will participate in this year's event.

kokobj@yna.co.kr
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