Japan-Republic of Korea Relations
Japan-ROK Foreign Ministers’ Telephone Talk
On September 9, commencing at 2:00 p.m. for approximately 20 minutes, Mr. Fumio Kishida, Minister for Foreign Affairs held a telephone talk with Mr. Yun Byung-se, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea (ROK). The overview of the talk is as follows.
1. Minister Kishida stated that it is totally unacceptable that North Korea conducted a nuclear test, which constitutes a direct and serious threat to Japan’s security and seriously undermines the peace and security of the region and the international community, that Japan immediately lodged a serious protest to North Korea and condemned it in the strongest terms through the North Korean “Embassy” in Beijing, and that he would like to coordinate the responses, including those at the United Nations Security Council, closely between Japan and the ROK and among Japan, the ROK, and the United States.
2. The two Foreign Ministers agreed that Japan-ROK and Japan-US-ROK will cooperate in the international community including at the United Nations Security Council in order to strengthen pressure on North Korea.