Ban Ki-moon Meets Yoon "Need to Further Strengthen the ROK-US Alliance"... President-elect "Please Help"

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is greeting former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at his office in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol met with former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the 18th and said, "Please help a lot." Ban pointed out the difficulties in the international situation and said, "I feel that strengthening the ROK-US alliance has become even more important."

President-elect Yoon and Ban met around 2:30 p.m. at the President-elect's office in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, and talked for about an hour. It was reported that they discussed the overall international situation and inter-Korean relations. President-elect Yoon asked for help, saying, "There are many excellent human resources in the Republic of Korea, and I will ask if I don't know something (and proceed accordingly)."

Ban said, "With the added friction between the US and China and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the international community has become completely difficult," describing the recent international situation as a new cold war. He added, "Self-reliance is the most important," and said, "In fact, there is a tendency among the people to take the ROK-US alliance for granted, but it should not be taken for granted."

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol is meeting with former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at his office in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 18th, listening to Ban's opinions on recent international issues. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

He emphasized, "Our alliance is different from the US-NATO alliance; it is not automatic intervention," and said, "In our country, the US president must obtain parliamentary approval within 60 days, so it is not automatic intervention." He added, "I think it is desirable to lead inter-Korean relations, especially relations with China, based on the accurate foundation of the ROK-US alliance."

After the private meeting, he again emphasized the ROK-US alliance when meeting with reporters. Ban said, "On the solid foundation of the ROK-US alliance, relations with China and especially Japan have worsened significantly, and I mentioned that it would be desirable to normalize these ROK-Japan relations and cooperate as neighboring countries."

He continued, "Regarding the North Korean issue, there is a tendency for North Korea policy to fluctuate every time the regime changes, and in some ways, there is a failure to properly respond to various provocations or policies of North Korea." Ban said he conveyed the opinion that inter-Korean relations should also be led with principles or standards recognized by the international community.

In addition, he urged the need to coordinate with the international community to respond to climate change. When asked whether he was assigned a role in the new government, Ban emphasized that there was no such conversation.

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