hankyoreh

South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Chung Eui-yong speaks with Chinese counterpart Wang Yi via virtual conference on Feb. 28. (provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong traded opinions about ways to quickly bring North Korea back to dialogue in a video call with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

The ministry said that during the Monday call Chung and Wang had “shared their assessment about recent developments on the Korean Peninsula and expressed their agreement that it is necessary and important to quickly jumpstart the Korean Peninsula peace process.”

The two ministers exchanged their opinions about Korea-China relations, Korean Peninsula issues, and matters of mutual interest in regional and international affairs.

Chung and Wang “celebrated 30 years of diplomatic relations and agreed to keep working together closely so that our bilateral relationship can enjoy mature and healthy development in a future-oriented direction,” the ministry said.

Toward that end, the two diplomats agreed to strengthen practical cooperation in a number of areas closely linked to the livelihood of people in their two countries. More specifically, they will seek to stabilize supply chains for raw materials, promote the exchange of cultural content and tackle environmental issues.

The ministry also reported the comments that Chung made about the situation in Ukraine in his call with Wang.

Chung reportedly denounced Russia’s armed invasion of Ukraine, saying that it violates the principles of the UN Charter, and explained the Korean government’s position that causing the loss of innocent life through the use of force cannot be justified under any circumstances. According to the ministry, Chung noted that Ukraine’s sovereignty and territory must be preserved and its independence respected. He said South Korea had joined in on the international community’s sanctions on that basis.

According to the ministry, Wang noted that while “the principles and spirit of the UN Charter must be obeyed, the reasonable security concerns of each country must be respected.” Wang also said that “as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China supported all diplomatic efforts for a peaceful resolution of the situation in Ukraine and would continue to play a constructive role toward that end.”

The ministry said that Chung and Wang also “exchanged opinions about matters of mutual interest, including Japan’s attempt to have the Sado mine complex registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site and dump contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear complex into the ocean and discussed ways to increase cooperation on the regional and international stage, such as through the election of a director-general of the International Labour Organization.”

By Lee Je-hun, senior staff writer

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]