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


Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.

Today, I have two announcements to make.

First, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, in his capacity as head delegate of the government of the Republic of Korea, will attend the Global Conference on Cyberspace (GCC) 2015 set to take place in The Hague, the Netherlands, on April 16 and 17.

The meeting will bring together some 1,600 people, including delegates from the governments of 100-odd countries, about 30 international organizations, enterprises and civil societies. At its opening ceremony, the Foreign Minister, as chair of the GCC 2013, will deliver a keynote speech.

In his keynote speech, Minister Yun will bring renewed attention to the escalating gravity of cybersecurity threats as demonstrated by the recent hacking attacks on Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. and Sony Entertainment Network, and underscore the need for international cooperation to counter such threats.

On the sidelines of the multilateral meeting, Minister Yun will meet bilaterally with his Dutch and Australian counterparts, Bert Koenders and Julie Bishop, to exchange views on key bilateral issues and ways to work more closely together on the international stage.

Moving on to the second and last announcement, Deputy Prime Minister Hwang Woo-yea will attend the Asian-African summit and the ceremony to come in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference, which will take place in Indonesia from April 22 through 24.

At the summit, Deputy Prime Minister Hwang will deliver a keynote speech to relay the willingness of the ROK to proactively contribute and cooperate toward peace and prosperity in Asia and Africa. He will also actively implement diplomacy with Asian and African countries by holding bilateral meetings with their delegates.

At the ministerial meeting on April 20 before the summit, Second Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul will speak about the ROK’s foreign policy objectives toward Asia and Africa.

This is all for my opening statement.


[Q&A]

Q: I have question regarding the former chief of Sankei Shimbun’s Seoul bureau. Earlier today, his travel ban was lifted. I believe that this issue has indeed impeded the improvement of the ROK-Japan relations. I would like to know what impact the lifting of the travel ban would have on the bilateral ties.

A: To my understanding, the Ministry of Justice has lifted the travel ban pursuant to the immigration control law and other relevant regulations. For details, please inquire of the Ministry of Justice, which to my knowledge, has issued a relevant press release.

With regard to the issue concerning the chief of Sankei Shimbun’s Seoul bureau, the ROK government has expressed on numerous occasions its position, which is that the prosecution authorities imposed the travel ban after conducting an investigation in accordance with relevant legal procedures and principles; and that the case is unrelated to the ROK-Japan relations, and so attempts to make it a diplomatic issue are uncalled for. This is the position that the ROK government has reiterated and that remains unchanged.

Q: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan will reportedly make an offering to the Yasukuni Shrine instead of paying tribute there during the shrine’s annual spring festival -- a move, Japanese press says, planned in consideration of Japan’s relations with the ROK, the US and China ahead of his visit to the US. What does the ROK government make of this plan?

A: I will not make predictions on something that has yet to happen.

Q: It was revealed belatedly that the ROK Ambassador to Libya was in the ROK at the time when the ROK Embassy in the country came under attack. In this regard, some point out that the Foreign Ministry has a problematic reporting system. What does the Ministry make of this view?

A: As we told you journalists earlier today, a relevant official of the Foreign Ministry had mistakenly mentioned that to his knowledge, the Ambassador to Libya had been at his Embassy’s temporary office in Tunisia on Sunday when the shooting attack occurred on the guard post of the ROK Embassy in Libya. As a matter of fact, the Ambassador was back home in Seoul after completing his term in Libya, with the new Ambassador to the country still having to take office. We are sorry that the official mistakenly gave you wrong information while briefing on the attack in an urgent manner right after it occurred on Sunday.

Q: I get the feeling that in handling the aftermath of the situation, the Foreign Ministry had no exchange of views with the chief – the supervisor -- of the diplomatic mission over the phone and/or through the diplomatic cable, which is incomprehensible from a common-sense point of view. What do you think of my view?

A: We need to check what has actually happened. Anyway, as I mentioned earlier, the ROK Embassy in Libya is being operated in two places: Its main office is set up in the Tunisian capital of Tunis, with its two staffers working in the Tunis office on a biweekly, rotational basis. Put simply, the ROK Embassy in Libya largely operates in its temporary office in Tunis. Meanwhile, two staffers work at the Embassy in Tripoli, Libya, on a rotational basis to ensure the safety of the 35-odd Korean residents in the country and to help them when emergencies arise.

As you must be aware, as the shooting attack occurred in Tripoli, Libya, the Foreign Ministry headquarters was reported on it by the Councilor, who serves as the top official or acting Ambassador of the Embassy in Tripoli, and provided the Embassy with guidelines on safety management of the local Koreans. This is my understanding as to what went on.

In terms of your question about whether the Foreign Ministry headquarters communicated with the Embassy staffers in Tunisia, I will check on that. Regardless, amid the sharp turn of events, it was important to communicate with the ROK Embassy in Libya and handle the aftermath of the incident. As I understand it, under the circumstances, the Foreign Ministry headquarters communicated mainly with the Councilor, who is in charge of the Embassy in Tripoli and serves as acting Ambassador, over the phone and through other means.

Q: The ROK government has reportedly decided to provide Yemen with 500,000 US dollars in humanitarian assistance. Please share with us the ROK government’s position in that regard.

A: The Foreign Ministry issued and posted a relevant press release on its website, I think. We post the English versions of such press releases as well.

You want me to read it to you, right? Here it goes.

In response to the grave humanitarian crisis in Yemen, including the sharp increase in the number of civilian casualties, triggered by the continued clashes between pro-government and allied forces and rebel forces of late, the government of the Republic of Korea will provide Yemen with humanitarian assistance worth 500,000 US dollars through UN agencies, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has requested that the international community extend a large-scale assistance to Yemen for the country to deal with its serious crisis. In the similar vein, the ICRC and the IOM are providing medical supplies and services as well as shelters to vulnerable migrants on the ground.

The international community, recognizing the urgent need in Yemen for humanitarian aid, is announcing aid plans.

The ROK government, comprehensively considering the humanitarian crisis in Yemen amid its unrest and the international community’s aid efforts and moves, has decided to offer assistance to the country. Going forward, despite its limited budget earmarked for humanitarian assistance to foreign countries, the ROK government will continue to offer humanitarian aid, thereby responding proactively to humanitarian crises of the international community.

I will conclude today’s briefing. Thank you.


* unofficial translation