The leaders of South Korea, the United States and Japan issued a joint statement, condemning North Korea's deployment of troops to Russia in support of its military offensive against Ukraine.

The statement followed a trilateral summit on Friday between President Yoon Suk Yeol, U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC) summit in Lima, Peru.

The leaders strongly denounced the North and Russia's violation of multiple United Nations Security Council(UNSC) resolutions, as well as their decision to expand Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

Yoon, Biden and Ishiba said intensifying military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, including a transfer of arms and ballistic missiles, is particularly serious, considering Moscow's permanent membership to the UNSC.

They said the three sides have maintained a firm stance on support for Ukraine's exercise of right to self-defense, as stipulated under the UN Charter.

The leaders reaffirmed their pledges to achieve a complete denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, and expressed support for a free and peaceful unification on the peninsula.

They also reaffirmed agreements made during last year's historic Camp David summit, and announced establishment of a secretariat to advance their three-way cooperation.