By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul held a Foreign Ministers' Meeting on Nov. 14 with U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken in Lima, Peru, where the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Meeting is being held, and exchanged views on U.S.-ROK relations, U.S.-Japan cooperation, North Korea, and key regional issues. Minister Cho and Secretary Blinken expressed concern that Russia's illegal military cooperation with North Korea seriously threatens the security of Europe and the Indo-Pacific region, and agreed to closely coordinate responses to pos
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul held his first bilateral meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya on the sidelines of the APEC Leaders' Meeting in Lima, Peru, and exchanged views on bilateral relations, North Korea, and nuclear issues on Nov. 14. The two ministers appreciated the swiftness with which the first foreign ministers' meeting was held after the inauguration of Japan's new cabinet, and agreed to continue to communicate and work closely together as heads of diplomacy to advance bilateral relations. In particular, they agreed to contin
By Diplomacy Journal Lee Kap-soo The 17th Forum on Korea-Central Asia Cooperation was held in Seoul on November 4, hosted by Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul. The forum was held ahead of next year's First Korea-Central Asia Summit, and was attended by the ministers and vice ministers of foreign affairs of Korea and five Central Asian countries. The forum was attended by about 300 participants, including government delegations, business leaders, and private experts from Korea and the five Central Asian countries, and discussed the current status of cooperation between Korea and Central A
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee | Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul held the first Korea-EU Strategic Dialogue with Josep Borrell, the EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy on Nov. 4, discussing Korea-EU relations, Russia-North Korea cooperation and the situation on the Korean Peninsula, as well as regional and international affairs. Minister Cho and High Representative Borrell agreed that the Strategic Dialogue is very timely and important under the current geopolitical situation, where the security situation in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region is closely lin
By Diplomacy Journal Lee Kap-soo Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul and Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun held a joint foreign and defense ministerial meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin in Washington on Oct. 31, 2024. The two sides reaffirmed the shared vision, common values, and unwavering commitment to their combined defense posture and the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) as the bedrock of our security partnership. They noted the U.S.-ROK Alliance serves as the linchpin of peace, security, and prosperity on the Korean Pen
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul, who is visiting Canada to participate in the ROK-Canada Foreign Affairs and Defense (2+2) Ministerial Meeting, held talks with Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly on Nov. 1 and exchanged views on ways to promote practical cooperation between the two countries, Korean Peninsula issues, and regional and global strategic cooperation. The two ministers assessed the launch of the 'Korea-Canada Foreign Affairs and Defense (2+2) Ministerial Meeting' as a step forward in the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two c
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul, who attended the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, held a 45-minute meeting with Wang Yi, a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and Minister of Foreign Affairs, to exchange views on issues of mutual interest, including China-ROK relations and the Korean Peninsula on Sept. 28. The two sides evaluated the high-level exchanges between China and Korea so far this year, and decided to continue high-level exchanges at multilateral meetings in the second half of this year, incl
By Diplomacy Journal Lee Kap-soo On August 7 in Seoul, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul met with Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique A. Manalo during Secretary Manalo's official visit to Korea from August 6 to August 9. The two ministers discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in the areas of diplomacy and security, economy, and people-to-people exchanges and consular affairs. They also exchanged views on major regional and global issues, including those concerning the Korean Peninsula. Minister Cho highlighted the strong bond between Korea and the Philippines, saying that
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul met with three newly appointed members of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) -- Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-sang of HS Hyosung, Vice Chairman Lee Kyu-ho of Kolon, and CEO Lee Ju-wan of Megazone Cloud -- on August 26. During the meeting, they exchanged views on the significance of Korea’s role as the chair of 2025 APEC as well as the activities of entrepreneurs within APEC. The Minister requested their full support to ensure the successful hosting of 2025 APEC. Minister Cho emphasized that Korea’s role as chair of APEC nex
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul held a meeting with Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa, who is on an official visit to Korea from August 1 to 2, in Seoul on Aug. 2. They discussed ways to strengthen bilateral relations, including diplomacy and security, trade and investment, future industries (clean energy, digital finance, smart infrastructure), tourism, consular affairs, and labor, as well as cooperation on regional and international issues. Minister Cho emphasized that Thailand is our key ally who fought together for freedom and peace during the
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul had a meeting with Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India, on July 26, on the occasion of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers’ Meetings in Vientiane, Lao PDR. This was the second face-to-face meeting between the two ministers, following the 10th ROK-India Joint Commission Meeting in March. The two Ministers noted with appreciation the active high-level exchanges between the two countries this year, which marks the first year after the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties. In addition, Minister Cho once a
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul met with Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong to discuss Korea-Australia relations as well as regional and global affairs on July 30. Both ministers recognized the continued development of the cooperative relationship between Korea and Australia, emphasizing their alignment as key like-minded countries in the region with shared democratic values and perspectives on regional and global issues and as “Comprehensive Strategic Partners” seeking more strategic and future-oriented collaboration. The ministers noted
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul held a luncheon meeting on July 22 with Albanian Foreign Minister Igli Hasani, who is on an official visit from July 21 to 25, and exchanged views on bilateral relations, economic cooperation, cooperation on the international stage, and regional affairs. Minister Cho welcomed the first official visit by an Albanian foreign minister to Korea in 13 years, since 2011, and expressed his hope that Minister Hasani's visit will serve as an important opportunity for the development of bilateral relations. Minister Cho also explained that the
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul invited the European diplomatic corps in Korea to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a tea meeting on July 16. Minister Cho spoke on Korea's policy direction towards Europe, noting the importance of continuing cooperation between Korea and Europe based on universal values and expressing Korea's will to expand cooperation. Participants in the tea meeting were heads of Mission or Chargé d’Affaires from the embassies in Korea of 34 European states and the European Union, including Poland, Croatia, Austria, Latvia, Estonia, Ro
By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul met with visiting U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul to discuss ways to strengthen U.S.-ROK space cooperation on July 16. Recalling that the leaders of the two countries decided to expand the U.S.-ROK alliance to all areas of space during their state visit in April last year on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-ROK alliance, Minister Cho emphasized that bilateral space cooperation based on the U.S.-ROK alliance is the core