1. Vice Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, together with Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Jean-Christophe Belliard, who was on a visit to the Republic of Korea, held the fifth Republic of Korea-European Union high-level political dialogue. In the meeting, the two sides discussed ways to step up bilateral cooperation on the back of the outcome of the bilateral summit talks held in October 2018; the current situation on the Korean Peninsula; and developments regarding the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU (Brexit) and its outlook.

2. The two sides, hailing meticulous reviews of the follow-ups on the bilateral summit successfully held in Brussels in October 2018 as well as close consultations on ways to implement them, agreed to work together mainly in order to continue reaping tangible results in 2019 from implementing the measures that had been agreed upon at the 2018 summit.

° To that end, Vice Minister Cho asked the EU to pay a keener attention toward the early completions of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) adequacy assessment and of the procedure for the EU’s accession to the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI).

° With regard to the EU decision to impose safeguard measures on steel products, the Vice Minister, bringing attention to the fact that the measures would have impact on production at local plants and job creation in Europe, voiced hope that in the future review process, the possibility of expanding the import quota for Korean-made steel would be positively considered. On that note, he asked the EU to pay attention and render assistance in order for the ROK-EU trade to continue in a mutually beneficial way.

° Deputy Secretary-General Belliard, calling the bilateral summit talks held in 2018 a significant opportunity to take the bilateral strategic partnership to the next level, stressed that despite many changes expected to come in 2019, including the UK’s withdrawal from the EU (Brexit) and the EU Parliament election in May, the close ROK-EU cooperative ties would remain unchanged.

3. The two sides, sharing with each other assessments of the current situation on the Korean Peninsula, agreed to remain highly cooperative with each other in order for a lasting peace to be established on the Korean Peninsula on the back of advances in inter-Korean and United States-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea relations in a virtuous circle.

° Vice Minister Cho extended appreciation to the EU for its strong support for the ROK government’s Korean Peninsula policy; called the second summit scheduled to take place between the United States and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in Hanoi on February 27-28 a significant opportunity to see meaningful progress toward a complete denuclearization and the establishment of peace on the Korean Peninsula; and asked the EU to remain supportive and cooperative to that end.

° Deputy Secretary-General Belliard, voicing hope for the success of the upcoming second US-DPRK summit, reaffirmed the EU’s all-out support and commitment to cooperation regarding the peace process on the Korean Peninsula.

4. The Vice Minister and the Deputy Secretary-General also exchanged views on progress in the negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU (Brexit) and their outlooks; and agreed to continue working closely with each other regardless of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. In addition, they exchanged views on situations in Northeast Asia, Iran and other major regions of the world, as well as international issues.

5. The fifth round of the ROK-EU high-level political dialogue, a pivotal bilateral consultative mechanism on political affairs, came four years after the one held in 2015. It is seen to have served as an opportunity to reaffirm the commitment to closer cooperation in the wake of the bilateral summit talks held in October 2018 and to discuss in depth main, current regional and global issues, including those concerning the Korean Peninsula.

* unofficial translation