Korea-Russia Foreign Ministers Meeting... "Regret over North Korea's Projectile Launch" "Northeast Asia Must Abandon Arms Race" (Comprehensive)

Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are taking a commemorative photo before the Korea-Russia Foreign Ministers' Meeting held on the 25th at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Doryeom-dong, Jongno-gu. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks to discuss economic cooperation between the two countries, the early visit of President Vladimir Putin to Korea, and the situation on the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia. On the morning of the 25th, Minister Chung expressed regret over North Korea's projectile launch, while Minister Lavrov emphasized that "Northeast Asian countries must abandon the arms race."

In a joint statement released in the afternoon, Minister Chung said, "Our side expressed deep concern over North Korea's launch of a projectile believed to be a short-range ballistic missile, while our government is making various efforts to achieve the goal of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula at an early date."

Minister Chung added, "We urged North Korea to join our efforts to make the Korean Peninsula a foundation of peace free from nuclear threats, as agreed upon in the inter-Korean military agreement reached between the leaders in September 2018."

He also evaluated Russia's support for the peace process on the Korean Peninsula. Minister Chung said, "Korea and Russia have agreed to continue close communication and cooperation at all levels to advance the peace process on the Korean Peninsula," adding, "We appreciate Russia's consistent support for the peace process and requested that it continue to play a constructive role."

The talks also discussed revitalizing high-level exchanges. Minister Chung said, "We evaluated the active high-level exchanges, including five Korea-Russia summits held over the past four years," and added, "We agreed to work together to ensure that President Putin's visit to Korea can take place early once the COVID-19 situation stabilizes."

Discussions were also held on economic and quarantine cooperation between the two countries. Minister Chung said, "We will accelerate the ongoing Korea-Russia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations on services and investment to ensure early conclusion," and "We will also identify and cooperate on flagship projects to strengthen cooperation within the Northeast Asia quarantine cooperation framework."

Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong is delivering opening remarks at the Korea-Russia Foreign Ministers' Meeting held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Doryeom-dong, Jongno-gu on the 25th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Minister Lavrov said, "We confirmed our willingness to activate bilateral contacts at all levels, including summit meetings," and regarding President Putin's visit to Korea, he stated, "It was decided to revisit the issue of the visit once the COVID-19 situation stabilizes."

On the same day, Korea and Russia also discussed the need to reduce the arms race in Northeast Asia during the talks. Minister Lavrov emphasized, "We particularly stressed the importance of efforts to maintain peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but also in the Northeast Asian region," adding, "The discussion also included the need for all relevant countries to abandon all kinds of arms races and the activation of military activities."

He continued, "Speaking of international issues, we focused on the situation on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia," and said, "Russia and Korea maintain the position of resuming negotiation programs among all relevant countries as soon as possible to resolve all regional issues." Discussions also touched on multilateral consultative bodies such as the East Asia Summit.

Regarding economic cooperation between the two countries, Minister Lavrov emphasized, "There are already large-scale projects being implemented or prepared in Russia's Far East and Arctic regions," and "We are discussing the creation of a joint investment fund worth 1 billion dollars with Korean partners through the Russian Direct Investment Fund."

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