WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson spoke with his counterparts from Japan, South Korea and Australia about the need for close military and economic cooperation, the Department of State said in a press release Tuesday.
"Secretary Tillerson reiterated the Administration's intent to strengthen our military alliances, our economic partnerships, and our diplomatic cooperation," the release stated.
Tillerson spoke with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Bung-se by phone on Monday.
The ministers each agreed on the need for close cooperation to combat the threat of Daesh and North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, as well as the tensions in the East and South China Sea.
Tillerson also expressed his interest in early meetings with the counterparts, and stressed his determination to work together with the ministers on regional and global priorities.
Earlier Tuesday, South Korea's news agency Yonhap said Yun and Tillerson reiterated the plan to deploy the THAAD missile interceptor to North Korea by the end of the year, and agreed to meet before the end of February.
