Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Trilateral Meeting with the National Security Advisors of Japan and the Republic of Korea

On Saturday, December 9, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met with ROK National Security Advisor Cho Tae-Yong and Japanese National Security Advisor Takeo Akiba for the fourth trilateral National Security Advisors trilateral meeting of the Biden-Harris Administration. Their meeting follows just four months after the historic Camp David Summit, in which President Biden, President Yoon, and Prime Minister Kishida launched a new era of trilateral cooperation.
 
The National Security Advisors reviewed progress on a wide range of trilateral initiatives, including the Commitment to Consult on regional crises, the sharing of ballistic missile defense data, and our collective efforts to respond to the DPRK’s use of cryptocurrency to generate revenue for its illicit WMD programs. They also discussed next steps in trilateral cooperation on economic security, including our supply chain early warning initiative, and on our efforts to align our three countries respective Indo-Pacific Strategies and capacity efforts throughout the region.
 
National Security Advisors Sullivan, Cho, and Akiba also discussed the deepening partnership between the DPRK and Russia and agreed to work in close coordination to counter its destabilizing effects. They reaffirmed the fundamental importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits and underscored their commitment to freedom of navigation and to international law, including in the South China Sea and East China Sea.
 
National Security Advisor Sullivan thanked National Security Advisor Cho and National Security Advisor Akiba for the ROK and Japan’s unwavering commitment to the people of Ukraine. He praised the courageous work undertaken by the ROK and Japan to strengthen their bilateral ties, noting that their efforts had allowed our three countries to commence and institutionalize a new era of trilateral partnership that will be a force for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific for years to come.