April 1 (UPI) — Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and South Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun agreed North Korea must remain nuclear-free while discussing matters in East Asia via telephone.
Landau and Kim discussed “pressing security issues in the region” and “emphasized the American commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a readout of the phone conversation that occurred Tuesday.
“The two also discussed opportunities for economic cooperation, particularly on energy issues, and highlighted growing Republic of Korea investments in American industry,” Bruce said.
Landau also offered his condolences for the loss of life and damage caused by recent wildfires in southeastern South Korea.
Landau was sworn in as deputy secretary of State on March 25 and previously was U.S. ambassador to Mexico.
During Landau’s Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing, Chairman Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, cited North Korea, China, Russia and Iran as “hostile powers” that “formed an authoritarian axis” and threaten the United States and global peace.
Tuesday’s phone conversation with Landau’s South Korean counterpart was held within the context of aggressive actions by North Korea, which seeks to develop nuclear arms and an effective missile arsenal capable of striking South Korea, the United States and their allied states.
Landau formerly helped negotiate the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement that protected cross-border commerce and supported regional supply chains during the COVID-19 pandemic.
His father, George Landau, formerly was ambassador to Paraguay, Chile and Venezuela and was stationed with the U.S. Foreign Service in Madrid, Spain, which is where Landau was born.
Landau is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School and clerked for Justice Antonin Scalia and Justice Clarence Thomas.
He is fluent in Spanish, proficient in French and is married to Caroline Bruce Landau. They have two adult children.