US Ambassador to UN to Visit S. Korea, Japan Next Week

The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations(UN), Linda Thomas-Greenfield, will visit South Korea and Japan next week. 

The U.S. mission to the UN said on Monday that the top U.S. envoy will travel to South Korea and Japan from Sunday to Saturday and participate in engagements to advance bilateral and trilateral cooperation on the United Nations Security Council and beyond. 

Nate Evans, the spokesperson for the U.S. mission, also announced the ambassador’s trip in a social media post, saying that during the trip she will emphasize U.S.’ commitment to the trilateral partnership and to peace and stability in the region. 

In particular, the ambassador will meet with senior officials of the two nations to discuss a possible new organization to monitor the enforcement of UN sanctions against North Korea. The move follows Russia’s veto of a UN Security Council resolution that would have renewed the mandate of a UN panel responsible for the task.

The top envoy will also travel to the Demilitarized Zone, meet with young North Korean defectors, and speak with students at Ewha Womans University.

In Japan, the ambassador plans to meet with family members of Japanese citizens who were forcibly abducted by North Korea and is expected to visit Nagasaki.