WASHINGTON, July 11 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke by phone on Wednesday with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha regarding denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and the state of U.S.-Japan-South Korea ties, said the State Department on Thursday.
Pompeo and Kang discussed their "commitment to the final, fully verified denuclearization of the DPRK (the Democratic People's Republic of Korea)," and "the importance of U.S.-Japan-ROK (South Korea) trilateral cooperation," said the department's spokesperson Morgan Ortagus in a statement.
Japan last week tightened restrictions on the exports of high-tech materials to South Korea, citing "significant damage to the relationship of mutual trust," while Seoul is demanding Tokyo withdraw the measure.
During the phone talks, Kang said Japan's trade restriction steps would cause damage to South Korean companies and have a negative impact on world trade as well as U.S. firms by disrupting the global supply system, South Korean Foreign Ministry said earlier on Thursday.
Kang noted that it would not be desirable for the friendly cooperative relationship between South Korea and Japan as well as trilateral relations with the United States.
Japan and South Korea will hold talks in Tokyo on Friday to discuss the issue, reported Japanese media.
