Seoul and Washington have agreed to cooperate to swiftly resolve the issue of South Korea’s inclusion on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Sensitive and Other Designated Countries List. 

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on Friday that the agreement was reached during Minister Ahn Duk-geun’s meeting with U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright in Washington.

During the meeting, the two sides also discussed ways to strengthen energy cooperation in various areas, including liquid natural gas, power grids, hydrogen, small modular reactors and nuclear energy, according to the ministry.

To facilitate this, the two governments agreed to hold regular public-private energy forums and energy policy dialogues for government officials.

Ahn said the visit was a success, providing an opportunity to strengthen the momentum of Seoul-Washington energy cooperation and confirming the will of both allies to resolve the “sensitive country” issue.