South Korea and the U.S. have coordinated opinions on providing food aid to North Korea.

A government source said the Foreign Ministry’s director general for the Korean Peninsula peace regime, Kim Hong-kyun, and other Foreign Ministry officials left South Korean on Monday for a meeting with U.S. officials.

They discussed the food issue with the U.S. State Department's Joseph Donovan and Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues Robert King.

King visited the North in May to inspect the food situation there. The two sides exchanged opinions on the necessity of food aid and securing transparency in food distribution based on the results of his trip.

Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will hold bilateral foreign ministerial talks in the U.S. next Friday. They’re expected to discuss the North Korean nuclear issue and reach a decision on whether to provide food support to North Korea.