Was the US aimed at South Korea…”Concerned that the alliance could be coordinated rather than the North Korean provocation”

The US State Department said on the 9th (local time) that it is more concerned about the situation in which close policy coordination with alliances such as South Korea is not achieved than North Korea’s provocation. As Joe Biden’s administration is considering a new approach to the North Korean nuclear issue, he stressed that the alliance is more important than anything else.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a regular press briefing on the same day, when asked,’If North Korea’s involvement in North Korea is delayed, will North Korea be concerned about taking a nuclear/missile test to attract US attention?’ “I think I am even more concerned about the possibility of not being able to cooperate closely with me.”

The Biden administration has repeatedly repeated its principled stance of “I will make a decision after reviewing the entire government’s policy toward North Korea” whenever a question arises about its approach to North Korea. Then, on this day, the alliance between the US and South Korea and other alliances made special emphasis on coordinating their positions on North Korea policy.

“Whether it’s North Korea, Iran, or any other challenge, we first make sure we’re on precisely the same page, and let our allies and partners know we’re there for them,” Price said. I want to do it.” “We have their support, and we want to make sure that we are in a diplomatic effort together,” he re-emphasized.

A reporter said,’Korea and Japan do not always take the same position as far as the North Korean nuclear threat is concerned. When asked,’Do you feel that you are thinking the same thing while in contact with the alliance?’, Spokesman Price responded to the effect that more coordination with the alliance was needed while avoiding immediate response.

“I think it’s a risk that (the United States) moves so fast that allies and partners cannot go together,” he said. “Before we take any approach, it is very important to know what our strategic goals are and to carry out our diplomatic responsibilities. But equally important is that our partners and allies know what our strategic goals are.” “Of course, the fundamental goal is to harmonize them, coordinate our approach and, as a result, be most effective.”

To the question of’how to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons’, he re-emphasized the existing position that “we will take a new approach to safeguarding the American people and alliances, and that will begin with a policy review of the North Korean situation.”

In formulating and negotiating new policies and approaches, he said, US interest is focused on reducing the threat to the US and its alliance, and improving the lives of the people of North Korea and South Korea.

The biden administration’s special emphasis on coordination with the alliance is that it is not irrelevant to the recent Blue House, as well as candidates for Foreign Minister Eui-yong Eui-yong and Minister of Unification Lee In-young, who have taken a different stance from the US approach to North Korea. Comes out.

The dissonance arising from the evaluation of North Korea’s willingness to denuclearize, postponement of military training in the ROK-US coalition, and the controversy over the North Korean War Ban Law are representative.

Above all, the Moon Jae-in administration hopes to continue the agreement between the North and South Korea summit in Singapore, while the Biden administration believes that former President Trump’s policy toward North Korea has failed.

Washington = Correspondent Park Hyun-young [email protected]