FM nominee meets U.S. nuclear envoy to discuss N. Korea policy

SEOUL, April 20 (Yonhap) -- Foreign Minister nominee Park Jin met with a visiting U.S. nuclear envoy Wednesday to discuss ways to coordinate North Korea policy under the incoming government of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, Park's office said.

Park, a four-term lawmaker of the People Power Party, sat down with U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim amid concern that Pyongyang could stage major provocations, including a nuclear test, ahead of Yoon's inauguration on May 10. Kim is on a five-day trip here that will last through Friday.

The nominee said Pyongyang's recent missile launches pose a serious threat to regional peace and stability and underscore the need for close coordination between Seoul and Washington against rising the threat from the North, according to a press release.

With consultations underway for a summit between Yoon and U.S. President Joe Biden in the near future, Park said the new government will closely communicate and cooperate with Washington from Day 1 for the allies' "watertight" posture, it read.

Kim was quoted as saying that the Biden administration has high expectations for working with the Yoon administration on issues related to the Korean Peninsula.

ejkim@yna.co.kr
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