A previously-announced South Korea-U.S. working group on North Korean affairs held its first meeting in Washington DC on Tuesday, the U.S. State Department said in a statement.

The group is chaired by U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun and the ROK’s Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Lee Do-hoon.

It was set up to improve cooperation between Washington and Seoul on North Korean affairs, amid concerns about growing daylight between the allies on the issue.

“The working group further strengthened close U.S.-ROK coordination of efforts to achieve our shared goal of the final, fully verified