The first trilateral talks since Donald Trump became president on Jan. 20 came after North Korea test-fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile powered by solid fuel on Sunday morning. Seoul said the missile flew some 500 km before splashing into the East Sea.

The talks included Brig. Gen. Park Chul-kyun, deputy director general for international policy at the ministry; Christopher Johnston, US acting deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia; and Koji Kano, Japanese director for defense policy.

They condemned the North's missile launch as an explicit and clear violation of the UN Security Council resolutions banning tests that can contribute to the advancement of nuclear weapons delivery capability, the statement said.

They also shared the view that the North's unlawful missile development program is a serious and lasting threat to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia, it said. (Yonhap)