On Tuesday, July 21, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Jina met with Pierre Krähenbühl, Director-General of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) who was visiting Korea, and discussed ways to enhance cooperation between Korea and the ICRC to address the deepening humanitarian crisis.

Vice Minister Kim commended the ICRC’s efforts to strengthen adherence to international humanitarian law and respond to humanitarian crises amidst the global spread of conflicts and disasters, as well as its role as a neutral intermediary in situations of armed conflict. She explained that the Korean government has been playing a role in the field of humanitarian aid as a major donor, with its vision to serve as a responsible global power. On that note, she pledged to continue cooperating with the ICRC to resolve humanitarian crises around the world.

Director-General Krähenbühl briefed on the ICRC’s activities in responding to humanitarian crises in conflict zones around the world and expressed his gratitude for the Korean government’s financial support to and cooperation with the ICRC. He also mentioned continued violations of international humanitarian law in conflict situations and requested the Korean government’s participation in the ICRC’s efforts to strengthen international humanitarian law, such as the Global International Humanitarian Law Initiative.

Vice Minister Kim stated that the North Korean prisoners of war in Ukraine are constitutionally considered Korean nationals and that Korea would accept them all should they wish to come to Korea. In that vein, she requested the ICRC’s active cooperation to ensure that the principle of non-refoulement of prisoners of war under international law is respected and that their free will is honored.

Both sides shared the view that promoting projects based on the Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) Nexus is necessary to improve the situation where international humanitarian aid is decreasing in the face of rapidly changing circumstances, and agreed to closely consult with each other in that regard by taking into account all relevant factors.