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| Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha speaks at an opening ceremony for a week-long meeting with South Korean ambassadors stationed abroad, at the ministry building in Seoul, Monday. A total of 181 ambassadors and consul generals are attending the annual meeting. / Yonhap |
By Kim Bo-eun
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Monday called on the country's envoys to boost diplomatic efforts for denuclearization and consolidation of peace on the Korean Peninsula.
"Diplomatic efforts need to be doubled so that inter-Korean relations and denuclearization create a virtuous cycle and lead to complete denuclearization and establishment of a lasting peace regime," she said at an opening ceremony for a week-long meeting in Seoul of South Korean ambassadors to foreign countries.
Kang said the global community is focusing on South Korea's diplomatic role to lead talks between Seoul, Pyongyang and Washington, as efforts to achieve peace and prosperity on the Peninsula.
The minister said "we are now facing a critical opportunity to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue" and stated "the year of 2019 will be the most critical year yet" toward this end.
She sought continued efforts from the envoys in getting international support for South Korea's policies toward the North.
Her remarks come at a time the government is seeking to host the North Korean leader in Seoul for talks with President Moon Jae-in, amid stalled denuclearization talks between Pyongyang and Washington.
Kang also assessed the progress Seoul has made on boosting cooperation with its four key allies as well as diversifying diplomacy with other states.
South Korea's close communication and cooperation with the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, as well as cooperation with the international community played an important role in enabling the three inter-Korean summits and the first meeting between leaders of the U.S. and North Korea, she said.
As for relations with Tokyo, which have recently become strained with issues concerning South Korean victims of Japan's forced labor and sexual enslavement, she said the ministry is working to develop bilateral relations toward a future-oriented direction while seeking a wise means to resolve historical issues.
The minister also stressed the role of overseas embassies to protect Koreans traveling and residing abroad.
The foreign ministry's annual meeting of envoys stationed overseas will continue through Friday. A total of 181 ambassadors and consul generals are attending the event.
The meetings will address next year's state affairs and innovation within the ministry.
