By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Hyun held his first South Korea-Indonesia foreign ministers' meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono, who is visiting South Korea, and exchanged views on high-level exchanges, practical cooperation, and regional and international situations, including the Korean Peninsula, on August 21. Minister Cho welcomed Minister Sugiono's visit and expressed hope that Indonesia, as our special strategic partner, would further deepen and expand mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries in all areas, taking the launch of the new governmen
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo North Chungcheong Province Governor Kim Young-hwan met with Joseph Yun, Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Korea, on August 11 to discuss cooperation measures, including expanding exchanges in the biotechnology, semiconductor, and economic sectors. This visit was a follow-up to the North Chungcheong Province delegation's visit to the U.S. in April. The North Chungcheong Province delegation, led by Governor Kim, visited Boston and Atlanta for four nights and seven days, beginning April 14, to promote global cooperation in the advanced biotechnology industry and e
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Hyun met with Representatives Beth Van Duyne (R-Texas) and Richard McCormick (R-Ga.), who were visiting South Korea, on August 12. They exchanged views on topics including Korea-Texas and Georgia cooperation, the ROK-US alliance, the North Korean nuclear and North Korea issues, and regional and global affairs. Minister Cho noted that Texas and Georgia serve as hubs for Korean investment in the US and play a key role in economic cooperation between the two countries. He emphasized the significant potential of both regions in developing the ROK-US all
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo The South Korea-U.S. summit will be held on August 25. The Presidential Office announced on Aug. 12, "President Lee Jae-myung will visit the U.S. from Aug. 24 to 26 at the invitation of U.S. President Donald Trump for the summit." If the summit is held on Aug. 25, President Lee will meet President Trump for the first time in 82 days since taking office. President Lee plans to hold a summit with President Trump and a working lunch. When asked whether President Lee's visit to the U.S. constitutes a state visit, the Presidential Office spokesperson Kang Yoo-jung stated,
By UN Journal Lee Jon-young President Lee Jae-myung held a summit with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, To Lam, the top official in the Vietnamese government, at the Presidential Office in Yongsan on Aug. 11, 2025. The two leaders adopted the "Joint Statement on Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between South Korea and Vietnam," which aims to foster future-oriented cooperation between the two countries. This marks the first visit by a Vietnamese leader to South Korea in 11 years, since 2014, and the first foreign guest and state guest since the new administr
By UN Journal Kayla Lee The 28th World Peace Art Exhibition Awards Ceremony was held at the Korea Gallery in Insa-dong, Seoul on August 6, 2025. About 620 artists from 21 countries participated in the event, submitting approximately 1,200 works. About 800 of these works were exhibited. The ceremony concluded successfully with approximately 200 distinguished guests in attendance. Attendees at the ceremony included Nurgali Arystanov, Ambassador of the Embassy of Kazakhstan, Fazliddin Arziev, Minister Counsellor of the Embassy of Uzbekistan, Consul Eugene Redko of the Embassy of Belarus, and Rita
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo The following article was contributed to the UN Journal for publication by the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Seoul, South Korea. –Ed. The President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev will take part in the Third United Nations Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDC3) on August 5, which will be held in the Avaza tourist zone in Turkmenistan. The III Conference is organized by the UN Secretariat in cooperation with the Government of Turkmenistan. The upcoming forum is expected to be attended by heads of state and government, over 100 high-level delegations, includi
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo UN Secretary-General António Guterres on July 28 warned that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is “at a breaking point” and headed toward a one-State reality marked by perpetual occupation and inequality, unless the international community takes urgent, irreversible steps to implement the two-State solution, the UN News reported. Addressing the high-level conference on the peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine and the implementation of the two-State solution, Mr. Guterres delivered a stark message about the urgency of action and the cost of delay. “For decad
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun, currently visiting the United States, met with Hudson Institute President John Walters and other leaders on July 31, 2025. They outlined the new Korean administration's foreign policy and exchanged opinions on ways to develop the ROK-US alliance. Minister Cho explained that the new administration seeks to build a globally responsible powerhouse that can effectively address changing global order under a pragmatic approach. He added that in doing so, the government plans to continue strengthening the ROK-US alliance and ROK-US-Japan c
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo The Embassy of Morocco in Seoul hosted a reception to celebrate the 26th anniversary of the accession of His Majesty the King Mohammed VI to the Throne, commemorated as the National Day of the Kingdom of Morocco, at the Ambassador Seoul Pullman Hotel in Seoul, on July 30, 2025. Moroccans celebrate the Throne Day on July 30 - an opportunity to proudly honor the proactive, insightful, and forward-looking Vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, who has transformed the Kingdom into an emerging, modern, and prosperous nation. Throne Day marks a powerful moment of unity for
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo The Embassy of Peru in Seoul held a reception to mark the 204th Anniversary of the Independence of Peru at Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul on July 28, 2025. Delivering a speech at the reception, Peruvian Ambassador to Korea Paul Fernando Duclos Farodi said, “In 2024, during the APEC Leaders' Summit held in Lima, Peru had the honor of transferring to Korea the chairmanship of this key platform for economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. “One of the most emblematic achievements of APEC Peru was the restoration of consensus among its 21 member economies, leading to
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun held his first telephone conversation with Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Iwaya Takeshi on Thursday, July 24, from 14:10 to 14:30, during which the two sides exchanged views on Korea-Japan relations and regional affairs. The call also served as a courtesy exchange marking Minister Cho’s inauguration. Minister Cho noted that Korea-Japan and Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation, along with the Korea-U.S. alliance, form the core pillars of the Korean government’s pragmatic diplomacy, and that the two countries would work together to buil
UNJournal Jon Lee | Gyeonggi Province Vice Governor Kim Seong-joong met with Ambassador Aida Ismailova of the Kyrgyz Republic to Korea and her entourage at the provincial office on July 22 to discuss international cooperation measures in the field of the disabled. This meeting was arranged to conduct preliminary exchanges and improve the effectiveness of the project ahead of the ‘2025 Local Government Public Cooperation Project Integrated Competition’ fully supported by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). The province plans to apply for this competition with the ‘Project to Str
By UN Journal Lee Jon-young Every day, we pass through a landscape of fierce words and division. Politics puts more weight on blame than responsibility, and those who are called leaders only talk about ‘strategies’ to defeat their opponents rather than the people. In the midst of this, I say, “This is a time when prayer is needed.” However, true prayer is not a monologue to heaven, but a heart attitude for our neighbors, and it should be the starting point of practice to reflect on my thoughts and actions for someone other than myself. Prayer is ‘courage’ for the weak. Even at this moment, som
By UN Journal Lee Kap-soo “Iran’s capacity for food exports—particularly high-quality seafood such as shrimp and fish from the southern regions—represents a promising new frontier for expanding trade and export cooperation with South Korea,” said Ambassador of Iran to South Korea on July 18. In an exclusive interview with the Diplomacy Journal held at the Embassy of DRC in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Amb. Saeed Koozechi said, “With targeted expertise and joint investments, these sectors in Iran are well positioned for further growth and development.” Noting that the volume of bilateral trade between Ko