Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has called for faster progress in discussions with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on revising the nuclear energy agreement and developing nuclear-powered submarines.
Cho conveyed the message during brief pull-aside talks with Rubio held before and after their trilateral meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on the sidelines of ASEAN-related meetings in Manila the previous day.
During the talks, Cho highlighted recent progress in economic cooperation between Seoul and Washington, including the opening of the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Cooperation Center in Washington this week. Cho also called for advancing discussions on revisions to the Korea-U.S. nuclear energy agreement to allow uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing, as well as Seoul's push to develop nuclear-powered submarines.
The two sides had planned to hold another round of security consultations in July following their inaugural meeting last month, but a detailed schedule has yet to be announced amid Washington's focus on the Middle East conflict. Rubio and Hooker expressed understanding of Cho's remarks and shared the view that the two sides should continue close consultations on the pending issues.
