Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul and Minister of National Defense Kim Yong Hyun from Oct. 31 to Nov. 2 will visit the U.S. and Canada for bilateral talks. Shown are Minister Cho (right) and U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken on March 18 at a luncheon meeting hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul's Jongno-gu District.

By Lee Jihae

Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul and Minister of National Defense Kim Yong Hyun will hold talks with the U.S. and Canada this week on leading issues on the Korean Peninsula, particularly North Korea's deployment of troops to Russia, and responses to global issues.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Oct. 28 said both ministers on Oct. 31 will attend the sixth U.S.-Republic of Korea Foreign and Defense Ministerial Meeting (2+2) in Washington with U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin.

Both sides are expected to discuss issues on the peninsula and the bilateral alliance, followed by the release of a joint statement on the results of their talks.

Seoul and Washington will assess the recent security situation on the peninsula amid Pyeongyang's troop dispatch, as well as discuss cooperation in policy toward the North.

Minister Cho and Secretary Blinken will hold a separate summit on the bilateral alliance, trilateral cooperation with Japan, and collaboration between Seoul and Washington on North Korean issues.

On Nov. 1, Ministers Cho and Kim in Ottawa, Canada, will attend Korea's inaugural foreign and defense ministers' meeting with Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly and Minister of National Defence Bill Blair. This will be the third such dialogue that Korea will hold with a country after the U.S. and Australia.

In the Canadian capital, both sides will discuss issues on the Korean Peninsula, global regions and the world and bilateral cooperation in national defense, security and the defense industry. They will adopt a joint statement on the outcomes of their talks.

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