By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee 

Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul, who is attending the G7 Foreign Ministers' Meeting (November 25-26, Fiuggi, Italy), held a meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot on Nov. 26 and exchanged views on bilateral relations, the situation on the Korean Peninsula, including Russia-North Korea cooperation, and G7 cooperation.

Minister Cho congratulated Mr. Barrot on his inauguration and expressed his pleasure in hosting the first foreign ministerial meeting after Mr. Barrot's inauguration. 

Recalling that he had visited South Korea in his capacity as Special Minister for Digital Affairs, Barrot said he realized that there was much to learn from South Korea in building a technology ecosystem, and he looked forward to further strengthening bilateral cooperation in various fields through continued high-level exchanges.

The two ministers expressed grave concern that Russo-DPRK military cooperation, including the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia, seriously threatens the security of Europe and the Indo-Pacific region, and agreed that a united and decisive response from the international community is needed, and agreed to continue working together to this end.

Following the AI Seoul Summit, the two ministers agreed that bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the fields of AI and oceans, including the AI Action Summit to be hosted by France next year, the UN Plastics Convention INC-5 currently being held in Busan, and the UN Ocean Conference scheduled to be held in Nice, France in June next year, has become even closer, and agreed to continue to strengthen such cooperation.

Minister Cho said that in order for the G7, which has been leading the norm-based international order, to enhance its relevance, it is important to strengthen its partnership with South Korea, a key country in the Indo-Pacific region, which is at the center of geopolitical competition and transformation, and asked for France's interest in this regard.

Meanwhile, Minister Barrot recalled that France will chair the G7 in 2026, and said that he would be interested in having South Korea participate in G7 consultations.