US, Japan, South Korea unite against N. Korea's missile launches, maritime claims

The United States, Japan, and South Korea have issued a joint statement on June 1 strongly opposing any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific waters and condemning North Korea's recent launches using ballistic missile technology.

The statement follows a meeting held on May 31 in Little Washington, Virginia, between U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, Japan's Vice Foreign Minister Masataka Okano, and South Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong Kyun.

During the meeting, the officials agreed to continue close coordination on North Korea and other challenges to regional and global stability. They also discussed plans to establish a new coordinating body to further align their policies.

According to US Deputy Secretary of State Campbell, the envisioned body will likely be "a secretariat of some kind."

In their joint statement, the three allies recognised the importance of "opposing unlawful maritime claims in the South China Sea" and reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. They stated, "There is no change in our basic positions on Taiwan, and we call for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues."

The statement comes amidst heightened tensions as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised an artillery demonstration drill of "super-large multiple rocket" launchers aimed at South Korea, according to Pyongyang state media on Friday.

This development follows South Korea's report that North Korea fired about 10 short-range ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan on Thursday and an unsuccessful satellite rocket launch by Pyongyang earlier this week.

The United States has condemned North Korea's recent launches as "in direct violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs)," describing them as "reckless behaviour" that poses a grave threat to the Korean Peninsula, the region, and international peace and security.