Press Briefing
Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations Noh Kwang-il
Apr. 21, 2015 14:30 KST


Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.

Today, I have three announcements to make.

For starters, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yong will attend and deliver a speech at the welcoming dinner to be hosted by the Canada-Korea Society on April 23 for Canadian veterans of the Korean War.

The dinner has been organized to welcome 42 Canadian veterans who fought in the Korean War for the freedom of the Republic of Korea.

For your information, Canada, which sent the third-largest number of troops after the US and the UK to fight alongside the ROK in the Korean War, is the ROK’s long-standing friend. We expect the event to serve as an opportunity to further promote the relations between the two countries.

Moving on to the second announcement, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yong will meet with Speaker of the Swedish Parliament Urban Ahlin on April 23.

For your information, Speaker Ahlin is on a visit to the ROK from April 19 through 24 at the invitation of his ROK counterpart.

In the aforementioned meeting, the two sides will exchange views on the ROK-Sweden relations as well as situations in different regions of the world.

Lastly, Second Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul will meet with Steven Ciobo, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Trade and Investment of Australia, on April 23.

In the meeting, the two sides will exchange views on ways to implement the ROK-Australia FTA brought into force in December 2014; promote people-to-people exchanges, including under the “New Colombo Plan”; and work more closely together in the Asia-Pacific region.

The meeting, like the recently held bilateral Foreign Ministers’ meeting, is expected to serve as an opportunity to step up strategic communication, such as on substantive and regional cooperation between the two countries.

This is all for my opening statement.


[Q&A]

Q: The Asian-African commemorative summit for the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference will take place tomorrow, right? Among its attendees will be Deputy Prime Minister Hwang Woo-yea of the ROK and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly Kim Yong-nam of North Korea. I would like to ask you about the likelihood of those two meeting with each other on the sidelines of the summit. Also, please tell us whether Deputy Prime Minister Hwang will touch upon the North Korean nuclear and human rights issues in the address he will deliver at the summit.

A: In terms of your first question, it is my understanding that there is no such plan for now, although they could run into each other as they will be at the same place and the same time. As for your second question, I will let you know about it at an appropriate time after the address is delivered. I do not consider it something we can discuss the content of in advance.

Q: With regard to the content of his forthcoming statement, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan mentioned yesterday that there would be no need to issue a new statement if it would be similar in content to the Kono Statement. What does the ROK government make of his remarks?

A: The ROK government takes note of the fact that Prime Minister Abe has reiterated time and again that he would honor the Murayama Statement and others issued by former Japanese administrations as well as the historical perspective contained in those statements. In particular, in 2015, a symbolic year marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and the 50th anniversary of the normalization of the ROK-Japan relations, the ROK government hopes that the Japanese government would seize such good opportunities as the envisioned issuance of a statement marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, the Asian-African commemorative summit for the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference and Prime Minister Abe’s upcoming address at a joint session of the US Congress to clearly state its historical perspective to its neighboring countries and the rest of the international community.

Q: Prime Minister Abe reportedly made an offering today to the Yasukuni Shrine, which is holding its annual spring festival. What, if any, is the ROK government’s position on the Prime Minister’s move?

A: The Yasukuni Shrine honors as “Gods” Class-A war criminals convicted by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East for their leading roles in Japan’s war of aggression. As the ROK government has reiterated all along, Japan’s political leaders should be well aware that their paying respect and homage at such a shrine is an action nullifying the basis of Japan’s post-war return to the international community and denying the international order.

I will conclude today’s briefing. Thank you.


* unofficial translation