President Yoon Suk Yeol has assessed that the South Korea-U.S. comprehensive strategic partnership has been firmly established during the past year-and-a-half. 

Yoon made the assessment on Thursday when he met with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken over a luncheon he hosted in the presidential residence in Seoul, citing that Blinken had played a pivotal role in establishing that partnership. 

Yoon said that South Korea, as America's ally, will defend key values and work closely with the U.S. to strengthen international order based on rules. He made the comment as he noted that Washington's leadership is becoming increasingly important amid concerns over North Korea and its nuclear issue, the Ukraine-Russia war and the conflict in the Middle East. 

In response, Blinken said the focus of Washington’s overseas policy is tailored to the Indo-Pacific region, adding that the U.S. plans to further solidify its alliance and strategic partnership with South Korea, which he described as the core in the region. 

The U.S. secretary then paid tribute to Yoon’s leadership which he said had led Seoul-Tokyo ties and relations among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan to make new leaps.