Seoul, Washington deepen cooperation on democracy, human rights issues

A top Korean diplomat met with senior U.S. government officials in Washington and discussed cooperation on democracy and human rights issues, Seoul's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

Chang Wook-jin, coordinator-general for international organizations and global affairs at the ministry, visited the United States from Monday to Tuesday and met with senior State Department and White House officials, according to the ministry.

During the visit, Chang met with Riley Barnes, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor at the U.S. Department of State; Michael George DeSombre, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs; and Ivan Kanapathy, senior director for Asia at the White House National Security Council.

The two sides exchanged views on major democracy and human rights issues, discussed ways to deepen bilateral cooperation in the fields, and agreed to maintain close communication on issues of mutual interests, the ministry said.

Chang highlighted close consultations between the two nations on the matters through the Korea-U.S. democratic governance consultative body and various other channels, and reaffirmed Seoul's commitment to promoting democracy and human rights.

Yonhap