1. Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se met with his Angolan counterpart Georges Chikoti on April 18, and discussed a range of issues, including the progress in the ROK-Angola relations, ways to further advance the bilateral relations, economic and trade cooperation, and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
2. With this year marking the 25th anniversary of the ROK-Angola relations, Minister Yun took note of the cooperative relations between the two countries, which have been continuously strengthened. Minister Yun especially stressed that there is a big potential for further development of the ROK-Angola friendly and cooperative relations, citing the recent robust high-level exchanges between the two countries.
o Minister Yun, saying that Korean companies which have been doing business in Angola since the 1980s even before the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries have laid the groundwork for the ROK-Angola relations, expressed hope that the ROK, as a partner for co-prosperity, will contribute to Angola’s economic development through continued robust economic exchanges in the private sector. Minister Yun also asked the Angolan government to take more interest in addressing trade issues between the two countries.
3. Minister Chikoti expressed the Angolan government’s strong willingness to swiftly overcome the country’s recent economic downturn and to develop its economy in various areas through economic diversification, and asked the ROK to increase its investment in Angola. Minister Chikoti also hoped that based on the relations of trust established through bilateral exchanges for a long time, the two countries will continue to explore concrete ways to work towards mutually-beneficial economic development.
o The two Ministers especially agreed on the need for joint efforts to realize the potential for bilateral cooperation in national defense, the defense industry and veterans affairs.
4. Minister Yun emphasized that North Korea is posing a serious threat to peace and security not only on the Korean Peninsula, but in the whole world by continuously engaging in provocations, including nuclear tests, ballistic missile launches, and a terrorist act using a chemical weapon. Minister Yun expressed hope that the Angolan government, which is strengthening cooperation with the ROK, though it was close to North Korea in the past, will take an active part in the international efforts to put pressure on North Korea, including implementing UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea.
o In response, Minister Chikoti said that a series of provocations by North Korea is an unacceptable threat to the entire international community, and that the Angolan government, as a responsible member of the international community, will contribute to world peace by thoroughly implementing related resolutions on North Korea, adding that the government is calling on North Korea to stop its violations of UN resolutions.
5. The ROK-Angola Foreign Ministers’ meeting served as an opportunity to strengthen the friendly relations with Angola, a key oil-producing and resource-rich county in Africa, and lay the foundation for economic exchanges and mutually-beneficial development of the two countries. The meeting also helped further expand cooperation with Africa in putting pressure on North Korea.
* unofficial translation