South Korea and Japan have reaffirmed their commitment to implementing a bilateral deal to resolve the issue of the Japanese military's wartime sexual enslavement of Korean women, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.

South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Lim Sung-nam and his Japanese counterpart Shinsuke Sugiyama met in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Wednesday (local time) to discuss bilateral issues ahead of three-way talks with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

In their talks, Lim stressed the importance of faithfully implementing the December deal under which Japan apologized and acknowledged responsibility for the crime while offering to pay 1 billion yen ($9.5 million) into a Seoul-based support foundation for Korean victims.

"The two vice ministers agreed on the importance of the thorough implementation of the deal," the ministry said in a press release.

They also discussed "specific measures" to increase cooperation as leaders of the international sanctions regime against North Korea, the ministry said without elaborating.

North Korea, which has come under toughened sanctions for its nuclear and missile programs, is expected to be a key topic during Thursday's trilateral meeting. (Yonhap)