Senior diplomats from Japan and South Korea have agreed to continue to work closely together in order to bring about the complete denuclearization of North Korea.

The head of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau at Japan's Foreign Ministry Funakoshi Takehiro met with South Korea's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Kim Gunn in Seoul on Tuesday.

They agreed that North Korea's nuclear and missile programs pose a clear and serious threat to the global community.

Japan is currently a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council and holds the G7 presidency this year. Funakoshi said that he intends to play a leading role in addressing the issue of North Korea.

The two diplomats confirmed that they will also continue to cooperate closely with the United States. They said this is to strengthen deterrence in the region and to try to bring about the complete denuclearization of North Korea in line with UN resolutions.