By Lee Hana

Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Kyung-wha, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Japanese Foreign Minister Kono Taro held a trilateral meeting in Manila on Aug. 7, on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). They discussed measures to prevent Pyongyang's provocations and to pave the road toward denuclearization.

The foreign ministers agreed that North Korea's firing of two intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) this past July is an indication of the northern regime's growing nuclear weapons capabilities. In this regard, the ministers reiterated their support for a complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner.

Furthermore, the three top diplomats agreed that strengthened sanctions against Pyongyang would act as a means to convince North Korea to change its stance, and that they would help to kick start dialogue on denuclearization.

Prior to the trilateral meeting, on Aug. 6, Minister Kang was able to meet with her North Korean counterpart, Minister Ri Yong-ho, during an official dinner for top diplomats attending this year's ARF, at Manila's SM Mall of Asia.

During the brief encounter, Minister Kang asked that North Korea respond "as soon as possible" to the South's offer to hold military talks to ease tension along the border, and to resume reunions for families separated by the Korean War.

To this, Minister Ri is reported to have said that, given the continued development of sanctions against North Korea, these kinds of offers for inter-Korean talks "lacked sincerity."

hlee10@korea.kr