Director Yeo Hangoo Struggling at the Forefront of Multilateralism

Visit to London, UK and Geneva, Switzerland
Discussion on Trade Cooperation including FTA and CPTPP

Yeohan Gu, Head of Trade Negotiations at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, is speaking at a meeting with the export-import logistics industry held on the 5th at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Honam Moon munonam@

As the global trade paradigm rapidly shifts towards multilateralism, Yeoh Han-gu, Director-General for Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (pictured), is actively working on the front lines.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 7th, Director-General Yeoh will visit London, UK, and Geneva, Switzerland from today until the 10th. This comes just a week after he returned from Washington D.C., USA, where he urged equal support for Korean steel industry investors. Notably, this London visit marks the first meeting between the trade ministers of Korea and the UK since Brexit, commemorating the first anniversary of the Korea-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

Director-General Yeoh is regarded as Korea’s top trade expert representing the government amid rapidly changing trade strategies focused on regional "economic blocs," supply chains, digital trade, and carbon neutrality. He graduated from Seoul National University’s Department of Economics in 1992 and entered public service in 1993 by passing the 36th Administrative Examination. Starting at the Ministry of Industry and Resources’ Industrial Policy Division, he has held positions such as head of the Free Trade Agreement team at the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and Director-General of Trade Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Since August last year, he has served as Director-General for Trade.

The active participation of Director-General Yeoh in this Korea-UK Trade Committee meeting is driven by Korea’s upcoming official application for membership in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in April. The CPTPP is a multilateral trade agreement involving 11 countries, accounting for 13% of global GDP and 15% of trade volume. Since the UK applied for CPTPP membership in February last year and is currently negotiating with member countries, Korea has the opportunity to discuss concrete cooperation measures with the UK government.

After the London schedule, Director-General Yeoh will move to Geneva, Switzerland, to continue trade consultations with key international organizations such as Ngozi, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and Franke, President of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Upon returning to Korea, he plans to review achievements and communicate with the public on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Korea-US FTA on the 15th of next month.

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