By UN Journal Kayla Lee National Security Adviser Jang Ho-jin met with visiting New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters at the Yongsan Office of the President in Seoul on July 15, the presidential office said. Jang and Peters agreed that the two countries, as similarly positioned countries in the Indo-Pacific region, should work together to safeguard peace, stability and a rules-based order in the region. Jang thanked New Zealand in particular for its role as chair of the Indo-Pacific Four (IP4) Summit, which played an important role in issuing a joint statement o
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo Archbishop Giovanni Gaspari, the new 12th papal nuncio to Korea, visited Catholic Medical Center (CMC) and Catholic University of Korea on July 10. The visit was organized to see firsthand the facilities of CMC, which has one of the largest medical networks and clinical and research centers in Korea, St. Mary's Hospital Seoul, which has a state-of-the-art medical system, and Catholic University College of Medicine and Nursing, which is training global medical talent based on the Catholic spirituality of respect for life. “I look forward to the visit of the Holy Father
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul held a luncheon meeting with New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters on July 15 to exchange views on issues of common interest, including high-level exchanges, practical cooperation, including the economy, and the Korean Peninsula and key regional issues. Cho noted that New Zealand is a longtime ally that participated in the Korean War, and that the two countries have maintained close communication and cooperation as similarly situated countries with shared values. In response, Deputy Prime Minister Peters empha
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo First Lady Kim Keon-hee met with North Korean detention victims and their families, North Korean defectors working to improve human rights in North Korea, and North Korean experts at the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) conference room in Washington D.C. on July 11. During her state visit to the United States in April last year, Mrs. Kim also met with North Korean experts and North Korean defectors to discuss North Korean human rights issues. "It is of great significance that we are meeting for the second time since last year, and recent reports that North Korea
By UN Journal Lee Jon-young President Yoon Suk-yeol, who is in Washington, D.C., to attend the NATO Summit, held a bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on July 10 (local time). The two leaders welcomed the opportunity to meet again in about a month and a half since they held a bilateral summit on the sidelines of the South Korea-Japan-China Summit in May, and appreciated the continuation of their meetings on the sidelines of the NATO Summit for the third consecutive year as part of the IP4. The two leaders noted that cooperation in various areas, including the economy, e
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo Gwangju City Mayor Kang Ki-jeong met with Paraguayan Ambassador to Korea Miguel Ángel Ubaldino Romero in the reception room of the city hall on July 9 to discuss fire safety exchanges. "Korea is the country that has provided the most support and cooperation in improving Paraguay's firefighting facilities," said Ambassador Romero, adding, "Our relationship with Gwangju, which began in 2018, goes beyond friendship and makes us feel like family and friends." Mayor Kang responded, "Natural and social disasters are occurring in various forms every day, so I hope we can lea
By UN Journal Lee Jon-young President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee held a dinner meeting with about 120 local compatriots in Honolulu, Hawaii, on July 8. (local time) When the President and Mrs. Yoon arrived at the entrance of the venue, they were greeted with a banner that read "Welcome to Hawaii by the President and Mrs. Yoon," along with many compatriots and Americans in military uniforms who came out to support President Yoon, who has firmly restored the U.S.-South Korea alliance, and some Americans who came out to support President Yoon, who sang "American Pie" last year, wav
UNJournal Jon Lee | President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee visited the Pacific National Cemetery in Honolulu, Hawaii, on July 8. The cemetery was established in 1949 and is home to veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Upon arriving at the cemetery, the President and First Lady were led by James Horton, Director of the Pacific National Cemetery, to lay a wreath and honor the U.S. veterans interred at the cemetery. After laying a wreath, they greeted and thanked the six Korean War veterans in attendance. The President and First Lady then visited the grave o
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul received the new Ambassador of Japan to Korea Koichi Mizushima and exchanged views on bilateral relations on July 5. Minister Cho welcomed Ambassador Mizushima's appointment at a time when bilateral relations between Japan and South Korea, which are of vital national security and national interest, are developing on the basis of deep trust between the two leaders. Cho also stressed that both sides should wisely manage bilateral issues in a mutually respectful and supportive manner in order to consolidate the positive trend of bila
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo The following article was contributed by Ambassador of Kazakhstan Nurgali A. Arystanov in Seoul to the Diplomacy Journal for publication. –Ed. It is widely recognised that preserving cultural heritage is crucial, as it shapes a nation’s identity and defines its future. Countries around the world have maintained historical sites, protected languages, and conserved natural sites. In Central Asia, the protection of cultural heritage is equally important, given the region’s rich and diverse history, which dates back to the 3rd millennium BCE. As the summer sun begins its
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo The Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in Korea hosted the Diplomatic Reception on June 28, 2024 on the occasion of the National Day of Belarus (celebrated annually on July 3) and to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Liberation of the country from Nazi invaders at the Pullman Hotel in Seoul. The solemn event organized jointly with the Belarusian diaspora in Korea, was attended by the heads of more than 35 foreign diplomatic missions, representatives of official, business and cultural circles of the Republic of Korea, as well as a number of well-known South Korea
UNJournal | Starting on July 1, Korea will assume the chairmanship of the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) for one year, with Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang In-sun serving as Chair, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on June 27. Critical minerals are indispensable for high-tech industries such as semiconductors, batteries, and electric vehicles, which are pivotal to Korea's economic prosperity and essential for the global clean energy transition for net-zero targets. However, the concentration of critical mineral reserves and processing facilities in a limited number of countries,
UNJournal Jon Lee | The Embassy of Nepal in Korea hosted the Nepal’s Tourism Promotion Event and B2B Meeting at the Korea Press Center in Seoul on June 27, 2024. Delivering welcoming and opening remarks by Prof. Dr. Jyoti Pyakural, Ambassador of Nepal to the Republic of Korea, said, “Nepal and Korea need to expand bilateral cooperation, especially in the tourism sector, this year, which marks the 50th anniversary of Nepal-Korea diplomatic relations. Accordingly, I hope that more Korean tourists will visit the beautiful country Nepal.” In the Nepal destination presentation, Hikmat Singh Ayer, s
By UN Journal Lee Jon-young “The Dominican Republic and Korea need to become strategic partners this year,” said Dr. Federico Alberto Cuello Camilo, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic in Korea. In an exclusive interview with the Diplomacy Journal, Amb. Cuello Camilo said, “As far as I know, H. E. President Yoon Suk-yeol plans to go to Latin America twice this year to participate in the APEC summit in Peru, and later to Brazil to participate in the summit of the G20. It would be an honor for us to host President Yoon during a stopover in the Dominican Republic. He could then sign with H. E. P
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul hosted a luncheon for diplomatic corps members from countries that participated in the Korean War in Daegu, Korea, to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Korean War on June 25. The luncheon was organized to honor the sacrifices and hard work of the 22 participating countries and more than 2 million veterans who contributed to the defense of Korea's freedom and democracy. Military support countries are the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Turkiye, Australia, Greece, Philippines, Thailand, Ethiopia, Netherlands, Colombia, New Zealand