1. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Sei-young had the 7th multilateral teleconference on COVID-19 response with his counterparts of countries in the region on the morning of May 1.

o The teleconference among the vice foreign ministers of 7 countries in the region -- the Republic of Korea, the United States, Japan, the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand, the Republic of India, and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam -- has taken place on a weekly basis following the first meeting on March 20.

2. In the teleconference, as part of efforts to minimize the negative impact of COVID-19 on international trade and investment, the vice foreign ministers exchanged in-depth views on a range of measures, including ensuring the uninterrupted flow of goods and services, maintaining international flights, and granting entry ban exemptions to essential business personnel.

3. Vice Minister Cho explained that joint efforts by the government and the people of the ROK to control the disease have been effective in bringing results, as the country recorded no new domestic COVID-19 case on April 29 for the first time in about 70 days, and not a single case related to the parliamentary election has been detected so far.

o Vice Minister Cho added that despite such results, the ROK is continuing its best efforts to contain the virus, while remaining vigilant against the possible spread of the virus due to an increase in domestic travel for a long holiday from late April to early May.

o In addition, Vice Minister Cho explained that the ROK government will actively share its experiences with the international community in a transparent manner by holding webinars on various disease control-related topics such as disease control, clinical treatment, etc. for the next three months starting on May 4. He asked for active participation and support from relevant experts in countries in the region.

o Furthermore, Vice Minister Cho stressed the importance of restoring global supply chains and the movement of essential businesspeople, and explained that the ROK has been cooperating with key trading partners for the movement of essential businesspeople, including by keeping flights between the ROK and the U.S. open, recently facilitating special entry of Korean businesspeople to enter Vietnam, and creating a “fast track” procedure with China.