South Korea and the United States have concluded working-level “technical discussions” ahead of their full-fledged talks on tariffs and trade.

According to the trade ministry on Friday, the South Korean delegation, led by Jang Seong-gil, chief of the ministry’s trade policy bureau, met with officials with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for the talks Wednesday and Thursday in Washington. 

While details remain unknown, a diplomatic source in Seoul described the latest talks as laying the groundwork for trade negotiations in the near future. 

The two sides held the discussions to follow up on the recent “two-plus-two” trade consultation and the talks between their top trade officials. 

During those high-level talks, the two sides agreed to craft a package of deals on tariffs and economic cooperation by July 8.