1. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met with her Greek counterpart Nikos Kotzias at the Lotte Hotel Seoul on November 30, and exchanged views on ways to strengthen the friendly relations between the ROK and Greece; ways to step up substantive cooperation in the shipping and shipbuilding industries, e-government, and transportation infrastructure; and the situations on the Korean Peninsula and in Southern Europe.

2. The two Ministers welcomed the robust high-level exchanges between the two countries, including Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon’s visit to Greece last month and Foreign Minister Kotzias’ visit to the ROK a month after. They also agreed to strengthen cooperation to expand substantive cooperation in e-government, transportation infrastructure, and agriculture, in addition to the shipping and shipbuilding industries, key areas in the two countries’ trade relations.

3. The two Ministers shared serious concern over the reckless provocations North Korea has engaged in, including its long-range ballistic missile launch on November 29, despite repeated warnings from the international community. They also reaffirmed the two countries’ firm position of no tolerance for a nuclear North Korea.

o Minister Kang stressed that it is more important than anything else to manage the situation in a stable manner, and hoped to see continued strong support from Greece in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue peacefully, including through the faithful implementation of Security Council resolutions.

o Minister Kotzias expressed full support for the ROK government’s positions on the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue and the improvement of inter-Korean relations, and said that his country will actively participate in the international community’s united efforts, including strong sanctions and pressure.

4. Minister Kotzias talked about the situation in Southern Europe and Greece’s foreign policy, and offered to continue cooperation for the ROK and Greece, which are middle-power countries, to play their roles in promoting peace and prosperity in their regions and around the world.

5. The two Ministers agreed to continue consultations on issues of mutual interest by launching mechanisms for policy consultations between the Foreign Ministries of the ROK and Greece in a range of areas in order to make more tangible progress in cooperation between the two countries.


* unofficial translation