U.S., Japanese officials meet on ties, DPRK

U.S. and Japanese senior officials met on Friday in Washington, discussing bilateral relations, cross-domain cooperation and the Korean Peninsula denuclearization, among other issues.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan held talks with their Japanese counterparts at the State Department on Friday morning, said the U.S. State Department in a statement released later in the day.

Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, right, speaks as, from left, Japanese Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo listen Friday, April 19, 2019, at the Department of State in Washington. [Photo: IC]

They vowed to strengthen the security partnership and enhance cooperation in cross-domain areas including space, cyberspace and the electromagnetic spectrum, the statement said.

The two sides also discussed the U.S. negotiation with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to achieve the Korean Peninsula denuclearization, while the Japanese officials, namely Foreign Minister Taro Kono and Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya, reiterated Japan's concern about the Japanese nationals allegedly abducted by the DPRK in the 1970s and 1980s.

U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton tweeted that he also met with the visiting Japanese officials on Friday morning at the White House.

The high-level bilateral meeting occurred a week ahead of the scheduled visit of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Washington on April 26-27.