The presidential office convened a standing committee meeting on Friday of the National Security Council(NSC) chaired by National Security Advisor Suh Hoon to discuss preparations for the South Korea-U.S. summit next month.

The NSC agreed to step up efforts to further cement the alliance and achieve progress in the Korean Peninsula peace process through an early resumption of dialogue between the two Koreas and between the U.S. and North Korea.

The council also agreed that economy and security-related offices should consult with eachother on reaching out to relevant countries for stronger strategic cooperation in regards to the changing environment in global trade and commerce.

The top office said that, in addition to regular committee members, presidential secretary for economy Ahn Il-hwan and Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Park Jin-kyu were also present in the meeting.

Their participation is believed to be in view of growing competition in global high-tech sectors including between the U.S. and China.

The NSC also agreed to continue measures to fight COVID-19 and exert efforts to protect and support South Koreans in Myanmar and India in consideration of the military coup and pandemic crisis, respectively.