Lee Tae-ho, 2nd Vice Minister, Meets Ambassadors from 11 Southeast Asian Countries in Korea... "Regret Over Excessive Entry Measures"

Explanation of the Korean Government's Efforts and Request for Cooperation Regarding COVID-19

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 28th, Lee Tae-ho, the 2nd Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, met with ambassadors from 11 Southeast Asian countries (10 ASEAN countries and Timor-Leste) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building and requested that they refrain from taking excessive measures regarding the entry of Koreans related to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

During the meeting, Vice Minister Lee stated, "As cooperation between Korea and the Southeast Asian region has become closer and exchanges of people and goods have greatly expanded, Southeast Asian countries are likely to have greater interest and concern about the recent spread of COVID-19 in Korea," adding, "Since our government has been responding proactively and systematically at the whole-of-government level, we expect each country to continue trusting our government's quarantine capabilities."

He emphasized that especially in order to overcome the COVID-19 crisis early and to continue developing friendly and cooperative relations between Korea and Southeast Asian countries stably, it is important to unite more and build mutual trust in times of crisis like the present.

Furthermore, Vice Minister Lee expressed regret over the excessive and unreasonable entry restrictions recently imposed on Korean nationals by some Southeast Asian countries. He said, "At the level of the Korean embassies, please report objectively and comprehensively on the situation in Korea to your home governments," and requested, "Please actively cooperate in managing the practical cooperation and friendly and trusting relations between Korea and each Southeast Asian country stably."

In response, the ambassadors to Korea expressed their gratitude for the detailed explanation of the Korean situation provided by Vice Minister Lee during a separate meeting with the Southeast Asian region, following the briefing for all overseas missions on the 24th, and stated their belief that the Korean government will overcome the current difficulties.

The ambassadors also stated that, based on an accurate understanding of the situation in Korea from their home countries, they will actively perform the necessary roles to enable cautious yet balanced responses and will continue to communicate closely with the Korean government.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.