The top diplomats of Seoul and Washington have held telephone talks and agreed to maintain close cooperation on North Korea issues. 

Seoul’s foreign ministry announced Thursday that Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held their first phone conversation since the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump.

While noting that Cho and Rubio saw eye to eye on maintaining close collaboration to deal with North Korea, Seoul’s foreign ministry said the two sides agreed to arrange an in-person meeting in Washington at the earliest possible date.

During the phone talks, Rubio also stressed the value of the South Korea-U.S. alliance as a linchpin of peace, security and prosperity, not only on the Korean Peninsula but across the Indo-Pacific region. 

This follows recent remarks from Trump suggesting North Korea is a nuclear power, contrary to Seoul and Washington’s joint stance of not recognizing North Korea as such.