1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs held an inter-ministerial meeting on ways to respond to Brexit on January 16. In the meeting chaired by Yun Kang-hyeon, Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, participants discussed the Republic of Korea government’s plans to respond to the issue, including ways to build cooperation platforms with the United Kingdom and the European Union.

o The meeting brought together officials from line ministries, agencies and organizations, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Trade, industry and Energy, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Fair Trade Commission, the Korea Customs Service, and the Korea International Trade Association.

2. In his opening remarks, Deputy Minister Yun said that the uncertainty over Brexit had risen, as the UK House of Commons voted down the UK-EU Brexit deal. He also said that being prepared for possible situations, including “No Deal Brexit,” was more necessary than ever, adding that concrete measures to respond to them would be devised.

o In particular, Deputy Minister Yun said that the ROK would establish platforms for cooperation with the UK and the EU at early stages, and continue to work to promote continued development of trade and investment relations between the ROK and the UK, and to minimize inconvenience to Korean nationals and companies in the UK and other European countries.

3. In the meeting, the officials also discussed prospects after the vote at the UK House of Commons, and ways to deal with Brexit in each area, including politics, economy, consular affairs and treaty relations.

4. Drawing upon the results of the meeting, the ROK government will form an inter-ministerial delegation, and hold a director-general level meeting* between the ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, the UK, on January 23. In the meeting, the two sides will exchange views on ways to prepare for Brexit, and discuss how the ROK and the UK can advance bilateral relations after Brexit.

* Head delegates: (ROK) Kim Hee-sang, Director-General for Bilateral Economic Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, (UK) Sarah Taylor, Director for International Agreements of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

o In addition, in order to provide exact information on Brexit and assistance to ROK nationals and companies, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the ROK Embassy in the UK, will take proactive measures such as establishing a Brexit TF in the ROK Embassy in the UK, setting domestic and overseas help desks, offering guidelines with legal advices, holding various presentations for companies in the ROK and the UK.

* unofficial translation