Assembly speaker discusses S. Korea-U.S. ties with Blinken

SEOUL, Jan. 6 (Yonhap) -- National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Seoul on Monday and discussed ways to strengthen cooperation between South Korea and the United States, officials said.

The meeting at the National Assembly came as the top U.S. diplomat visited Seoul amid efforts to ensure its alliance with the U.S. remains strong despite political uncertainties coming from last month's botched martial law imposition.

In the meeting, Woo requested continued support from the U.S., adding that a special parliamentary delegation is set to travel to the U.S. soon to explain South Korea's situation and seek cooperation for their alliance.

"On top of a national crisis over the martial law imposition, the Republic of Korea is in great grief due to the passenger aircraft tragedy," Woo was quoted as saying.

"But as we have survived numerous national crises, such as colonial rule, (territory) division and dictatorship, I am certain we will overcome this crisis," he said.

An official at the National Assembly said Blinken is the first U.S. state secretary to visit the parliament to meet with a South Korean National Assembly speaker.

Earlier in the day, Blinken paid a courtesy call on acting President Choi Sang-mok, and discussed North Korea's nuclear development and military alignment with Russia with Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul.

Blinken was on a three-nation tour this week, with planned stops in Japan and France. The trip is widely expected to be his final overseas visit as the top U.S. diplomat under the Biden administration.

mlee@yna.co.kr
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