Senior diplomats of S. Korea, U.S. discuss key minerals, supply chain

▲ In this file photo, Second Vice Foreign Minister Oh Young-ju delivers a speech at a Seoul hotel on July 28, 2023. (Yonhap)

S Korea-US-economic security

Senior diplomats of S. Korea, U.S. discuss key minerals, supply chain

SEOUL, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) -- Senior diplomats of South Korea and the United States held phone talks Thursday during which they discussed ways to step up cooperation on critical minerals and economic security, Seoul's foreign ministry said.

During their talks, Second Vice Foreign Minister Oh Young-ju and Jose Fernandez, the U.S. under secretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, agreed to work closely together to achieve success in areas of technology and economic security through high-level exchanges, including an upcoming trilateral summit among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan.

The two sides also agreed to continue bilateral cooperation to ensure stable supply chains of major minerals within the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) framework, according to the ministry.

It marked Oh's first talks with the U.S. counterpart since assuming the post late last month.

They are expected to meet in person at the eighth Senior Economic Dialogue (SED) later this year. The SED is a regular consultation channel on economic cooperation between the South Korean foreign ministry and the U.S. State Department.

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