Press Briefing
Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Affairs Soosuk Lim
December 6, 2022 14:30 KST
Good afternoon. Let me start today’s briefing.
First, Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin will meet with Gabon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Michael Moussa-Adamo and Minister of Water, Forests, the Sea, and Environment Lee White on Wednesday, December 7.
In the meeting, Foreign Minister Park will have a broad exchange of views on issues of mutual interest, including bilateral relations, forestry, responses to climate change, ways to increase substantive cooperation, regional affairs, and cooperation in the international arena.
The upcoming meeting is expected to serve as an opportunity to further advance the relations between Korea and Gabon, which mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year.
Next, Foreign Minister Park will hold a signing ceremony for the “Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Mutual Cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Voluntary Agency Network of Korea (VANK) to Promote Digital Public Diplomacy through Public-private Cooperation” at the Center for Participatory Diplomacy this afternoon and have a meeting with members of VANK.
The MOU to be signed, which is to renew the MOU concluded in 2012, will mainly focus on cooperation in education and management to nurture young private digital diplomats and the spread of digital Hallyu (the popularity of Korean culture) through social media.
Lastly, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyundong will deliver opening remarks at the 2nd Vaccine Cooperation Forum in the Indo-Pacific Region to be held in Seoul on the afternoon of December 7.
The 1st Forum was co-hosted by Korea and Australia last year, and this year’s Forum will be co-hosted by the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the U.S. Department of State.
At the forthcoming Forum to be held under the theme “Strengthening Our Resilience and Preparedness for Future Pandemics,” foreign affairs and health experts from the host countries and ASEAN member states will discuss vaccine security and the establishment of vaccine partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region.
In his opening remarks, Vice Minister Cho will stress the importance of vaccine security to respond to health crises, such as the outbreak of a new pandemic, and express Korea’s commitment to cooperation and contribution, emphasizing the importance of regional health cooperation for a peaceful and safe Indo-Pacific region.
(A question-and-answer session followed.)