ID :
208122
Mon, 09/19/2011 - 18:12
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/208122
The shortlink copeid
S. Korean FM heads to New York for U.N. General Assembly
SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan left for New York on Monday to prepare for President Lee Myung-bak's attendance at the United Nations General Assembly and other global meetings there.
Lee's departure for New York is scheduled for Tuesday. In New York, the minister will attend the 66th U.N. General Assembly with the president and co-chair a high-level meeting on nuclear safety, foreign ministry spokesman Cho Byung-jae said earlier.
The nuclear safety conference in New York, scheduled for Sept. 22, aims to boost international cooperation in the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, he said.
The conference comes as South Korea is expected to take a central role in discussing the issue during a world nuclear security summit in Seoul in March next year. More than 50 heads of state are expected to attend the two-day summit.
In New York, the South Korean foreign minister will also meet with his counterparts from some 10 nations, including Japan, Britain and the United Arab Emirates, for bilateral talks on matters of mutual interest, the spokesman said.
In a meeting with his Japanese counterpart, Koichiro Gemba, Kim may discuss South Korea's recent proposal for bilateral talks on the issue of sexual enslavement of Korean women by Japan's World War II military. The issue was recently thrown back into the spotlight after South Korea's Constitutional Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for Seoul to not take any action for the victims, who demand compensation and an apology from Japan.
The minister will also attend a conference on U.N. reforms which will focus on ways to strengthen representation, democracy and responsibility within the U.N. Security Council.
Before ending his New York trip on Saturday, Kim will attend an international conference aimed at rallying support for famine-struck nations in the Horn of Africa. South Korea has so far pledged a total of US$5 million in aid toward famine relief in Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Djibouti.
Lee's departure for New York is scheduled for Tuesday. In New York, the minister will attend the 66th U.N. General Assembly with the president and co-chair a high-level meeting on nuclear safety, foreign ministry spokesman Cho Byung-jae said earlier.
The nuclear safety conference in New York, scheduled for Sept. 22, aims to boost international cooperation in the aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, he said.
The conference comes as South Korea is expected to take a central role in discussing the issue during a world nuclear security summit in Seoul in March next year. More than 50 heads of state are expected to attend the two-day summit.
In New York, the South Korean foreign minister will also meet with his counterparts from some 10 nations, including Japan, Britain and the United Arab Emirates, for bilateral talks on matters of mutual interest, the spokesman said.
In a meeting with his Japanese counterpart, Koichiro Gemba, Kim may discuss South Korea's recent proposal for bilateral talks on the issue of sexual enslavement of Korean women by Japan's World War II military. The issue was recently thrown back into the spotlight after South Korea's Constitutional Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for Seoul to not take any action for the victims, who demand compensation and an apology from Japan.
The minister will also attend a conference on U.N. reforms which will focus on ways to strengthen representation, democracy and responsibility within the U.N. Security Council.
Before ending his New York trip on Saturday, Kim will attend an international conference aimed at rallying support for famine-struck nations in the Horn of Africa. South Korea has so far pledged a total of US$5 million in aid toward famine relief in Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Djibouti.
