North Korea Cyber Threat Response Group: U.S., South Korea, Japan Hold Meeting in Tokyo

A working group between South Korea, the United States, and Japan officially launched on the 7th to respond to North Korea’s cyber threats.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the first meeting of the U.S.-Japan-Republic of Korea (ROK) Trilateral Diplomatic Working Group to counter cyber threats posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) was held in Tokyo. This is a follow-up measure to the summit meeting held at Camp David in the United States last August.

Lee Joon-il, Director of the North Korean Nuclear Diplomacy Planning Division at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jung Pak, U.S. State Department Special Representative for North Korea, and Hideo Ishizuki, Japan’s Ambassador for Cybersecurity, participated as senior representatives.

The representatives of the three countries evaluated the achievements of cooperation to block illegal cyber activities, which are a source of funds for North Korea’s nuclear and missile development. They also expected that the launch of the working group would further strengthen cooperation among the three countries’ diplomatic authorities. In particular, they decided to make various diplomatic efforts, including strengthening cooperation with the international community and the private sector, to block the activities of North Korea’s information technology (IT) personnel.

At this meeting, the three countries, South Korea, the U.S., and Japan, declared that their diplomatic authorities have established a cooperation framework to respond to North Korea’s cyber threats. They plan to continue discussions by holding a second meeting at an appropriate time.

By. Kang Do Rim