Press Briefing
Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations Cho Tai-young
Oct. 30, 2012 14:30 KST


Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.

Today, I have two announcements to make.

First, the Governments of the Republic of Korea and the US State of Iowa have agreed to mutually acknowledge the validity of driver’s licenses issued by the other side.

The ROK’s Consul-General in Chicago Huh Chul and Director of the Iowa Department of Transportation Paul Trombino will sign the Agreement on Mutual Recognition of Driver’s Licenses on October 30, US local time.

The ROK has concluded such agreement with 129 countries so far. In case of the US, the ROK has already done so with eleven states. The State of Iowa is the 12th US state that the ROK has reached such agreement with.

The Agreement is expected to improve the convenience of ROK and US nationals staying in or visiting the ROK or Iowa.

Moving on to the second and last announcement, Foreign Minister Kim Sung-Hwan will attend the 2nd Meeting of the Post-2015 High-level Panel in London, UK, on November 1 and 2.

For your information, Minister Kim was appointed as a member of the Panel in August.

The Panel comprised of 27 high-ranking officials from across the world will hold a total of five meetings. The group will then compile a recommendation report on post-2015 global development agenda by drawing upon the outcome of those meetings and submit it to the UN Secretary-General by May 31, 2013.

In the 2nd Meeting, which comes after the one in New York in September, the Panel will engage in discussions on the themes of human development, jobs and livelihoods. There will also be meetings with experts from the private sector and civil society on the sidelines.

This concludes today’s briefing.


* unofficial translation