(LEAD) S. Korea, U.S., Japan vow to bolster cooperation on N. Korea

(ATTN: UPDATES with Seoul envoy's meeting with Russian counterpart in last two paras; CHANGES dateline)

WASHINGTON/SEOUL, July 11 (Yonhap) -- The chief nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan reaffirmed their shared commitment to a stronger trilateral cooperation against North Korea's threat during their meeting in Indonesia last week, according to the State Department on Sunday.

Kim Gunn, Seoul's new special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, on Friday met his U.S. counterpart, Sung Kim, and Japan's Takehiro Funakoshi on the resort island of Bali, where the Group of 20 (G-20) foreign ministers' session was held.

"U.S. Special Representative Kim reaffirmed the importance of enhancing trilateral security cooperation in the face of the DPRK's continued destabilizing and unlawful ballistic missile launches and committed to work closely to mitigate the threats posed by the DPRK's malicious cyber activity," department spokesperson Ned Price said in a press release. The DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.

"They reiterated their commitment to a diplomatic path and called upon Pyongyang to return to dialogue," Ned added.

Kim, who assumed the post in May, also had his first in-person talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov there and asked for Moscow's constructive role in dealing with North Korea, according to Seoul's foreign ministry.

High-level consultations between the two nations have been hampered since Seoul's joining of international sanctions against Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine in February, but their top nuclear envoys have maintained contact to discuss issues related to Pyongyang.

ejkim@yna.co.kr
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