Lee Tae-ho, 2nd Vice Minister, Holds Video Conference with Heads of 7 Latin American Missions to Discuss Protection and Support for Overseas Koreans

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 17th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a video conference chaired by Second Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho with the heads of diplomatic missions from seven Latin American countries, which have recently emerged as new epicenters of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, to discuss measures for the protection and support of overseas Koreans.

The video conference, chaired by Second Vice Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho, was attended by heads of diplomatic missions from seven countries?Guatemala, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, Chile, and Peru?where the spread of COVID-19 is severe and many overseas Koreans reside.

Vice Minister Lee stated, "Despite difficult local conditions such as border closures, domestic travel bans, and flight cancellations due to COVID-19, about 1,050 of our overseas nationals have safely returned home from 22 Latin American countries through the efforts of our diplomatic missions so far." He added, "As COVID-19 continues to spread, I ask our missions to continuously strive to protect our citizens and businesspeople by supporting repatriation, preventing infection and providing treatment within local Korean communities, and assisting the activities of Korean enterprises."

The attending heads of missions reported that, along with COVID-19 response measures such as providing health masks for overseas Koreans, many compatriots are facing increasing economic difficulties due to the prolonged suspension of economic activities. They also noted that vulnerable groups are growing due to poor local health and medical environments, and that active support measures are being developed accordingly. Furthermore, the heads of missions stated that they are closely cooperating with local law enforcement authorities to strengthen security in areas densely populated by Koreans, in preparation for worsening public safety caused by social and economic instability from the COVID-19 spread.

Vice Minister Lee emphasized that, amid the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis, "Protecting the lives and safety of our citizens is the foremost task for our diplomacy to earn the trust of the people," and urged continuous communication with local Korean communities.

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