Top diplomats of S. Korea, Russia to hold talks on bilateral ties, peninsula situation

SEOUL, March 25 (Yonhap) -- Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, were set to hold talks in Seoul on Thursday to discuss bilateral ties, the Korean Peninsula situation and other issues, the foreign ministry said. The two countries' first foreign ministerial meeting in Seoul since 2009 comes after tensions arose due to North Korea's short-range missile launches Sunday and an acrimonious Sino-U.S. rivalry that has brought China and Russia closer together. At the meeting set to begin at 10:30 a.m., Chung was expected to call for Russia's support for Seoul's push to resume dialogue with Pyongyang and foster lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula. The two sides could also discuss ways to strengthen bilateral relations, as the countries mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral relations belatedly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the meeting, Chung and Lavrov will issue press statements summarizing the results of their talks, the ministry said. Lavrov's visit to Seoul following his trip to Beijing has developed geopolitical overtones, as the United States pushed to "reinvigorate and modernize" its regional democratic alliances, with China and Russia moving to close ranks with each other. Lavrov is set to leave here later in the day. sshluck@yna.co.kr (END)