Press Briefing
Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations Noh Kwang-il
Mar. 31, 2015 14:30 KST


Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.

Today, I have four announcements to make.

First, on April 2, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will meet with a delegation from the US House of Representatives, including its Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Congressmen Charles Rangel and Sander Levin.

For your information, the House delegation consisting of ten Democrats and Republicans will visit the Republic of Korea on April 2 and 3 as part of its Asia tour.

In the meeting, Minister Yun will speak about the ROK’s efforts to improve its relations with Japan, adding that the most important thing for this to happen is for Japanese political leaders to have a correct understanding of history.

He will also explain the ROK’s position on its key pending issues with the US, including the revision of the bilateral Civil Nuclear Cooperation Agreement, the visa quota for Korean professionals and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP); and seek to win understanding and support from the US Congress.

Moving on to the second announcement, Foreign Minister Yun will meet with the World Economic Forum (WEF)'s Managing Director Philipp Rösler later today, March 31.

During the courtesy call on Minister Yun, the two sides will exchange views on ways for the ROK and the WEF to work together.

Thirdly, the chiefs of overseas diplomatic missions, who are attending their ongoing 2015 meeting, will have an opportunity to meet the public and people from different walks of life for communication on April 1.

In particular, some mission chiefs will visit a Multicultural Family Support Center in Yongsan and Sangnok Orphanage.

Those who visit the Multicultural Family Support Center will talk to multi-cultural families to learn about their difficulties and offer them consolation.

Those who visit Sangnok Orphanage will spend time with the children drawing pictures and encourage them to have dreams and hopes.

Lastly, on the sidelines of the ongoing 2015 meeting of the chiefs of overseas diplomatic missions, a “meeting with entrepreneurs” event will take place on April 2.

The event to come in the form of one-on-one consultations between mission chiefs and entrepreneurs is an opportunity for the latter to seek advice from the former with regard to their challenges in operating overseas.

It is also expected to serve as a good opportunity for entrepreneurs wishing to enter foreign markets to obtain up-to-date and credible information on overseas markets.

Foreign Minister Yun will attend the event to extend encouragement to the mission chiefs and to encourage overseas missions to step up their support for bids of Korean companies to expand their presence in foreign markets.

This is all for my opening statement.


[Q&A]

Q: Tangible progress is being made with regard to Japan’s application to have the modern industrial heritage sites from its Meiji period inscribed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site. In response, the ROK government sent a special aide to the Foreign Minister in his capacity as a delegate to respond to such moves on behalf of the Ambassador to UNESCO, whose post is currently vacant. What efforts has the ROK government made in this regard? And what strategies will it implement in response down the road?

A: The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), a civilian advisory organ to the World Heritage Committee, convened panel meetings in December 2014 and March 2015 to review applications for World Cultural Heritage inscriptions made by different countries in 2014, including Japan’s application for 20-odd modern industrial facilities in Kyushu and Yamaguchi.

If candidate sites meet even one of the six technical criteria for inscription stipulated in the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention, ICOMOS, a civilian advisory group, is supposed to recommend the sites for inscription. I deem it difficult to officially check the exact and specific details of the ICOMOS recommendation until mid May.

The final decision on Japan’s application will be made at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee after a review of the ICOMOS recommendation. Since 2012, when the Japanese government applied for the inscription, the ROK government has strongly urged the Japanese side at high and various other levels to reconsider the application. At the same time, the ROK government has repeatedly stated to the UNESCO Secretariat and its Director-General as well as ICOMOS and member states of the World Heritage Committee its position that the inscription of the Japanese sites fraught with painful history of forced Korean laborers during the Japanese colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula, would run counter to the basic spirit and purpose of the world heritage system.

The ROK government will once again and strongly express its position at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee and work closely with member states of the World Heritage Committee to that end.

The ROK’s former Ambassador to UNESCO Lee Sang-jin recently expressed his wish to resign from the post for personal reasons after the Foreign Ministry completed appointing new chiefs of overseas missions for the spring season of 2015. The Ministry is expediting its process to appoint the succeeding Ambassador as soon as possible.

To fill the vacuum caused by former Ambassador Lee’s resignation, Ambassador Choi Jong-moon, who has expertise in both multilateral and bilateral affairs, has been appointed as a delegate to UNESCO to supervise cooperation with the organization across the board.

Q: You have just mentioned that the ROK government will continue to deliver its position that the inscription of the Japanese sites would run counter to the basic spirit of the world heritage system, while working closely with relevant countries in that regard. Despite all such efforts, according to a press report issued earlier today, the ROK government had failed to make sufficient diplomatic efforts. What does the Foreign Ministry make of this view?

A: I believe you can find my answer to that question in the long remarks I have just made.

Q: Could you give us a short, summarized version?

A: Yes. I read the press report a little ago. The press report seems to be based on the assumption that ICOMOS, a civilian advisory body, would make a positive recommendation on the Japanese application. As I explained earlier, this recommendation is based on a review of the technical criteria. The final decision will be made at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee, slated to take place in Bonn, Germany, from June 28 through July 8. For your information, the World Heritage Committee is an inter-governmental organization.

Q: In other words, are you saying that the ROK government holds an optimistic view that UNESCO will end up not inscribing the Japanese sites as they fail to be in line with the basic spirit of the world heritage system?

A: I do not make such predictions. To my knowledge, the civilian members of ICOMOS are currently working to decide whether or not to recommend the inscription of the candidate sites. With the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee yet to take place, I cannot make any predictions regarding its outcome.

Let me stress this, in particular: The ROK government has been aware of the fact that the Japanese government has made efforts for the inscription of the aforementioned sites since 2011, which has also been covered by the press. Since then, the ROK government has repeatedly stated its position as to whether the inscription would go in line with the purpose of the world heritage system. It will once again strongly express its position at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee, which the ROK is a member of and will thus be attended by a government delegate from the country.

Q: I have a related question. To my understanding, it is very rare for an ICOMOS-recommended site to be rejected in the final review process. Should one member country of the World Heritage Committee vote against a candidate site in the final decision-making process during the 39th session, will it fail to be inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site? Are the final decisions made on the basis of majority or consensus?

A: As I understand it, there were quite a few cases where ICOMOS recommendations were not accepted. For a candidate to be accepted by the 21-member World Heritage Committee, it should win support from 2/3 of the government delegates from the 21 countries minus those who abstain.

Q: Could you tell us what those 21 countries are? I would also like to know which countries the ROK should make more diplomatic efforts for.

A: Okay. The 21 countries are the ROK, Japan, Algeria, Colombia, Croatia, Finland, Germany, India, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Senegal, Serbia, Turkey and Vietnam.

Q: You mentioned in your opening statement that in his meeting with a delegation from the US House of Representatives, the Foreign Minister will explain the ROK’s position on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Could you share with us what he will say in that regard?

A: Well, we will let you know in detail about the outcome of the meeting in a press release, after the meeting takes place. With the meeting having yet to take place, it is inappropriate to make comments on the TPP, because as you must be aware, the Foreign Ministry is not in charge of it. The Foreign Ministry will hold close consultations on the matter with relevant government agencies and let you know in detail about the outcome of those consultations and the aforementioned meeting.

Q: A newspaper article issued earlier today, citing an unidentified source from the White House, said that the ROK-US consultations are already underway with regard to the possible deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery to the ROK, with the ROK having yet to give an answer to the US in that regard.

This is contradictory to the three Nos of the ROK government in terms of the THAAD issue -- no request from the US, no consultation with the US and no decision. Is the press report carrying incorrect information? What is the Foreign Ministry’s position in this regard?

A: In fact, I have not seen that press report. I am sorry if I seem to be shifting the responsibility to another government agency, but the Ministry of National Defense is in charge of this matter. Let me talk to the Ministry of National Defense and let you know about that.

Q: Around this time, late March, every year, Japan announces the outcome of the examination of history textbooks. So, I guess Japan is about to do so. Many speculate that Japan’s examination of history textbooks would produce way worse results this year than in previous years. Please share with us what you know in this regard, for example, the expected timing and/or content of the announcement.

A: To my knowledge, the announcement will come in early April, not late March. As soon as the outcome of the examination is available, the ROK government will review and analyze it meticulously. If the ROK government sees a need to express its position, it will do so.

Q: The timing for US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter’s visit to the ROK has been set. US Secretary of State John Kerry will reportedly visit the ROK around the same time. What has been decided in that regard?

A: US Secretary of State John Kerry has expressed his hope to make a tour of Northeast Asian countries, although nothing has been decided in that regard yet, I think. When a decision is made, we will let you know at an appropriate time.

I will conclude today’s briefing. Thank you.


* unofficial translation