Cho Tae-yeol "Leading International Community's Response to North Korea through Korea-US-Japan Cooperation" (Comprehensive)

Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul announced that in response to the North Korea-Russia treaty, he plans to engage in close cooperation through timely consultations with the US and Japan.

At a press briefing held on the 21st (local time) at the UN Mission in New York, Minister Cho stated regarding North Korea and Russia's agreement to establish a 'comprehensive strategic partnership' and strengthen military and economic cooperation, "I held a series of calls with the foreign ministers of the US and Japan to focus on measures to respond to the North Korea-Russia summit."

Cho Tae-yeol, Minister of Foreign Affairs [Photo by Yonhap News]

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Regarding the content of the calls, he emphasized, "In response to North Korea's threats, we agreed to closely cooperate to strengthen the firm ROK-US alliance and ROK-US-Japan security cooperation while leading the international community's resolute response," adding, "I believe it is significant that we sent a strong message through timely consultations with our allies, the US and Japan."

Minister Cho held telephone consultations the previous night with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko to discuss responses to the North Korea-Russia summit. A senior Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said, "The fact that the US and Japanese foreign ministers set aside other schedules to urgently hold calls is evidence that the ROK-US-Japan cooperation system is operating closely."

Minister Cho visited the UN Headquarters to preside over the 'Cybersecurity Open Debate,' a chair country representative event, on the 20th as South Korea represents the UN Security Council chairmanship in June. On the 21st, he also attended a meeting of the UN Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), where he previously served as chair during his tenure as UN ambassador. The PBC is a joint subsidiary body of the UN General Assembly and Security Council, tasked with mobilizing resources for peacebuilding and strengthening coordination among UN internal and external agencies.

Minister Cho self-assessed, "This UN visit helped widely publicize that the close ties between North Korea and Russia pose a serious threat not only to the Korean Peninsula but also to global peace and stability, thereby aiding in eliciting a unified response from the international community."

Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yeol Photo by Yonhap News

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Having served as the permanent representative to the UN from 2016 to 2019, he diagnosed that the dynamics within the UN have changed significantly over the past five years. Minister Cho said, "With the ongoing US-China strategic competition and geopolitical conflicts, it has become very difficult for the Security Council to fulfill its role in addressing the various conflicts and issues arising in the international community," adding, "At the same time, this is a time when the Security Council's role in maintaining international peace and security is more important than ever."

He continued, "Given the challenging times and our assumption of a Security Council seat, we will strive to ensure that this membership expands the scope of our diplomacy and further elevates our status as a global pivotal state."

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