Sherman: U.S. will discuss with China over N. Korea policy

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, the No. 2 diplomat in the U.S. State Department, who is currently visiting South Korea, met President Moon Jae-in on Thursday and stated that she will have a thorough discussion on the U.S. policy towards North Korea in a forthcoming visit to China. Washington and Beijing are known to have recently resumed regular high-level talks strictly focused on diplomatic relations, including concerns over North Korea, while keeping a distance from the recent contention over economic matters. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi are scheduled to meet on Sunday and Monday.

President Moon met Deputy Secretary Sherman at Cheong Wa Dae and requested that the U.S. play an active role to restart discussions between Washington and Pyongyang. “The U.S. looks forward to a prompt positive response on the resumption of dialogue from North Korea. We hope to continue our closely coordinated efforts for dialogue with North Korea,” Ms. Sherman said.

According to a person familiar with foreign affairs, the U.S. and China have recently reopened a diplomatic channel, which had been practically severed during the Trump administration. An official declined to be named said that the resumed talks are expected to revolve around matters concerning diplomatic relations, including North Korea policy, which both Washington and Beijing agreed on the need to cooperate on. The source further said that the two countries will adopt the two-track approach that separates economy from diplomacy.


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