South Korea and the United States on Monday launched formal working-level consultations on Washington-led sanctions against Iran that are to be reinstated in a decision by President Donald Trump.
The two sides had the first round of talks in Seoul on maintaining close partnerships on the matter. South Korea was represented by Yun Kang-hyeon, deputy foreign minister for economic affairs. His counterpart was Chris Ford, assistant secretary for international security and nonproliferation at the State Department, who is leading a nine-member inter-agency delegation to Seoul.
South Korea's focus is minimizing the negative impact on the local economy, especially firms doing business with Iran.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not elaborate on the results of the inaugural session, saying the government will continue relevant consultations with the ally.
Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha also talked about the issue with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during their phone conversation, according to the ministry.