SEOUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th June, 2020) The South Korean Foreign Ministry's special representative for the Korean Peninsula peace and security, Lee Do-hoon, has held a meeting in Washington with Stephen Biegun, US deputy secretary of state in charge of Pyongyang track, amid the recent spike in the inter-Korean tensions, Yonhap news agency reported on Friday, citing sources.
According to Yonhap, Lee, who arrived in the US on Thursday, has also held talks with National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien. The officials have discussed the measures that could be implemented to prevent further deterioration of the Seoul-Pyongyang relations.
Yonhap noted this was Lee's first visit to the United States since January. As the visit was unannounced, some media reports suggested the diplomat could have arrived in the US under the South Korean presidential administration's order, to discus the crisis in the relations with the neighbor. However, the presidential administration later said the visit had been scheduled long ago and had nothing to do with the escalation.
Tensions are running high, as North Korea cut off communication with its southern neighbor and blew up the joint liaison office in the border town of Kaesong earlier this week, responding to Seoul's failure to prevent North Korean defectors from sending leaflets criticizing policies of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un from across the border.
