North Korea, which possesses nuclear weapons, will be the subject of “wide-ranging” talks when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits South Korea the next week, the foreign ministry of Seoul announced on Wednesday.
Blinken visit Seoul: Next Wednesday, Blinken will travel to Seoul for a two-day stay; this will be his first trip there since March 2021.
According to a statement from the ministry, the top US envoy would have “wide-ranging discussions on the alliance, North Korea issues, economic security and advanced technology, as well as regional and global situations” with his South Korean counterpart Park Jin.
“It is anticipated that Secretary Blinken’s visit will present a significant chance to advance the South Korea-US alliance,” the statement continued.
The visit takes place as Washington and Seoul increase defence cooperation in response to Pyongyang’s unprecedented barrage of nuclear tests this year.
Less than a week after the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan visited a South Korean port, a US B-52 bomber with the capability to carry nuclear bombs made an unusual landing there last month.
Additionally, it coincides with North Korea’s increasing proximity to Russia, escalating Western concerns that Pyongyang is arming Moscow for its conflict in Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un hosted a high-profile summit in September in the far east of Russia. The following month, Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov paid a visit to Pyongyang.
According to Washington and analysts, Pyongyang was asking for a variety of military supplies in exchange, including modernising its military hardware from the Soviet era and obtaining satellite technology.
North Korea’s attempts to launch a military spy satellite into orbit have fallen short twice this year.