South Korea and Australia held a meeting of their foreign and defense ministers in Melbourne on Wednesday and discussed the possibility of including South Korea in the AUKUS security partnership which comprises the U.S., Britain and Australia.

In a joint news conference after the so-called two-plus-two meeting, defense minister Shin Won-sik said Seoul welcomes the fact that AUKUS members are considering including South Korea as a partner in Pillar Two of the security partnership. 

Shin said he believes South Korea’s participation would contribute to the advancement of Pillar Two and peace in the region. 

Australian defense chief Richard Marles said he believes there will be an opportunity for South Korea to take part in the development of Pillar Two while hinting at the possibility of Japan’s participation as well. 

Pillar One of AUKUS aims to support Australia in acquiring conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines, while Pillar Two is about cooperation in high-tech areas, including quantum computing and artificial intelligence.