SEOUL, March 5 (UPI) -- U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte arrived in South Korea Monday for bilateral military talks and discussions on North Korea's nuclear drive.
Upon arriving in a Seoul airport, Negroponte met Defense Minister Kim Jang-soo to discuss security issues, including the planned relocation of U.S. troops stationed in South Korea. He also traveled to the U.S. Yongsan garrison in central Seoul.
During his three-day stay, Negroponte is scheduled to meet President Roh Moo-hyun and his key security policy advisor, among others, for talks focused on following up last month's nuclear agreement on scrapping North Korea's nuclear programs.
Negroponte's Asia tour, which included stops in Japan and China, comes after the Feb. 13 deal under which the North agreed to shut down its plutonium-producing reactor and admit U.N. nuclear inspectors in return for massive energy aid.
In a diplomatic exchange by senior officials, Seoul's Foreign Minister Song Min-soon is currently on a trip to the United States to discuss the North's nuclear issue.
