Overview
- National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac said on Aug. 28 that South Korea will closely coordinate with the United States to make sure any restart of U.S.–North Korea dialogue produces concrete progress on Pyongyang’s nuclear program.
- Seoul signaled it will support trust-building steps between Washington and Pyongyang while insisting that talks must not weaken South Korea’s defense posture or let Seoul be sidelined in decisions affecting the peninsula.
- South Korea formally asked China to play a constructive role and agreed with Beijing to begin joint preparations for President Lee Jae Myung’s attendance at the APEC summit and to restore high-level security dialogue channels.
- To show continued deterrence, Seoul confirmed trilateral military drills with the United States and Japan set for Sept. 9–11 to test readiness against North Korea’s missile and nuclear threats.
- Officials said alliance management will also focus on a bundle of bilateral issues — U.S.-Korea investment, corporate disputes including Coupang, intelligence cooperation, and the timing of wartime operational control transfer — all of which affect Seoul’s leverage in future talks.