Top S.Korean, US diplomats discuss ways to engage with Pyongyang

Seoul, Feb 13 (IANS) South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met in Hawaii to discuss the best ways to engage with North Korea.

Saturday's meeting follows a recent series of North Korean missile launches amid a prolonged hiatus in dialogue with Pyongyang, reports Yonhap News Agency.

Chung said he looked forward to having discussions on how to deal with North Korea.

"We have a lot to cover, and we are very concerned about the current situation on the Korean Peninsula," the top South Korean Minister said at the start of his bilateral meeting with Blinken.

"I hope we can also have a good exchange of our views on how to deal with the situation," he added.

North Korea staged seven rounds of missile launches in January, marking the largest number missile tests it conducted in a month.

It also fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile, its longest-range missile launched since late 2017.

The foreign ministerial talks also follow bilateral and trilateral meetings between the countries' top nuclear envoys held earlier this week in Honolulu.

South Korea's top nuclear envoy Noh Kyu-duk earlier said he had very meaningful and productive discussions with his US and Japanese counterparts on "several ways to engage with North Korea", and that the Foreign Ministers would continue their discussions when they meet here.