Press Briefing

Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations Noh Kyu-duk

February 7, 2019  14:30  KST

Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.

First, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Lee Tae-ho will attend the 14th MIKTA Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, to be held in Yogyakarta, the Republic of Indonesia, on February 7.

MIKTA is a consultative mechanism among middle-power countries consisting of the United Mexican States, the Republic of Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of Turkey, and the Commonwealth of Australia. It was launched on the occasion of the 68th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2013.

In the upcoming meeting, Vice Minister Lee will discuss the way forward for MIKTA, and help the MIKTA member states better understand the current situation on the Korean Peninsula.

Vice Minister Lee will also visit Jakarta on February 8 and meet with Secretary-General of ASEAN Lim Jock Hoi.

In the meeting, Vice Minister Lee will explain the ROK government’s latest efforts to implement the New Southern Policy, and ask for the ASEAN Secretariat’s interest and active cooperation regarding the 2019 ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit to be held in the ROK late this year.

Lastly, the United States announced on February 1 (local time), the first day of our Lunar New Year holiday, that it would suspend its obligations under the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty on February 2. Regarding this, media outlets in the ROK paying close attention to this asked the Foreign Ministry about the ROK government’s position.

The ROK government understands that the US decided to withdraw from the INF Treaty, taking into account various related issues.

Considering its implications for global security and disarmament, the ROK hopes that the process will proceed in a way that contributes to international peace and stability through consultations among countries concerned.

Thank you.

(A question-and-answer session followed.)

* unofficial translation