Japan and South Korea reaffirmed Saturday the importance of close cooperation among the two nations and the United States to seek a peaceful solution to the problem of North Korea's nuclear program.

Vice Foreign Minister Yukio Takeuchi and Yim Sung Joon, senior secretary to the South Korean president for foreign policy and national security, exchanged views on the matter in Tokyo.

The meeting was held a day after North Korea announced its decision to pull out of the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty -- a move that provoked harsh criticism around the world.