The chief nuclear envoys of South Korea and Japan have shared their assessments on the current situation regarding the denuclearization of North Korea. 

According to an official at South Korea's Foreign Ministry, Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Lee Do-hoon held telephone talks with Kenji Kanasugi, director general of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, on Wednesday. 

They assessed the outcomes of the South Korea-U.S. summit in Washington earlier this month and discussed bilateral cooperation to advance efforts for complete denuclearization and a lasting peace regime on the Korean Peninsula. 

They also agreed to continue close cooperation. 

Their telephone conversation came ahead of a series of summits between major countries surrounding the Korean Peninsula. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vladivostok on Thursday and then hold a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday. 

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will visit the U.S. for two days from Friday for a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.