The US, Japan and South Korea created the Arctic-Pacific Tripartite Partnership against China and Russia in the Indo-Pacific and the Arctic. The purpose of this project is maritime cooperation and economic partnership in the Pacific and Arctic regions," the US State Department said in a statement. According to South Korea's Yonhap news agency, the memorandum also provides for joint work on navigational safety and mutual assistance in case of emergency situations on board ships. Cooperation with the Arctic Council is expected on these issues. The US State Department notes that Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a meeting with colleagues from Japan and South Korea - Toshimitsu Motegi and Cho Hyun - discussed the issue of "China's attempts to establish control in the South China Sea, the pressure of Chinese power in the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea". Rubio also drew attention to the cooperation between China and the Russian Federation, which he said "destabilizes the Indo-Pacific region."