S.Korea, Japan to hold vice defense minister-level talks

SEOUL - South Korea and Japan will hold a vice defense minister-level dialogue on Wednesday in Seoul, Yonhap News Agency reported Tuesday citing a Seoul's defense ministry official.

South Korea's vice defense minister Baek Seung-joo will meet with visiting Japanese counterpart Hideshi Tokuchi in Seoul Wednesday to talk about pending issues of mutual concern and situations on the Korean Peninsula, the official was quoted as saying.

The official said South Korea accepted Japan's proposal for such dialogue, noting that there would be no detailed discussions on the bilateral issues as his visit would come as a courtesy call.

Tokuchi would arrive in Seoul Tuesday afternoon and come back to Japan on Wednesday after the talks.

The two vice ministers met in October when the Seoul Defense Dialogue (SDD) was held. At that time, the senior officials reportedly talked about the bilateral issues, including Japan's push to exercise its right to collective self-defense.