South Korea, US Agree to Further Hinder Financing of Pyongyang's Arms Programs – Envoy

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - South Korea and the United States have agreed to further strengthen their joint efforts to prevent funds from flowing into North Korea's weapons development programs, Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Kim Gunn said.

Kim and US Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim met in Washington on Monday.

"[We] have agreed to strengthen our efforts to more definitely cut off funds to North Korea's nuclear and missile development programs," Kim was quoted as saying by South Korean news agency Yonhap following the meeting.

The diplomat added that Seoul and Washington discussed joint countermeasures against possible provocations by Pyongyang.

"In a current condition when North Korea has announced plans for an additional launch of a so-called satellite, [we] reviewed and coordinated our countries' countermeasures against potential North Korean provocations," he said.

The US diplomat echoed the South Korean envoy's remarks while reiterating Washington's commitment to seeking dialogue with Pyongyang, the news agency said.

On May 31, North Korea unsuccessfully launched the Malligyong-1 military reconnaissance satellite mounted on a Chollima-1 carrier rocket. After the separation of the first stage, the engine of the second stage failed to ignite, causing the rocket to lose thrust and fall into the Yellow Sea, North Korea's space agency said. In early June, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted a resolution condemning North Korea's missile launches as a serious threat to the safety of international shipping. On June 4, North Korea responded with a statement, in which it threatened to stop informing the organization about the country's future launches.