Kuala lumpur: First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo will attend a series of high-level meetings involving the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as well as the United States and China in Malaysia next week, the foreign ministry said Thursday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Park is scheduled for a three-day visit to Kuala Lumpur starting Wednesday to engage in several ASEAN-related foreign ministers' meetings. These sessions include the South Korea-ASEAN, the ASEAN Plus Three with China and Japan, and the East Asia Summit, which features participation from Australia, India, New Zealand, and the United States.
On the final day of the visit, Park will also join the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which includes countries such as Canada, the European Union, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. North Korea is also a member of the ARF. "Vice Minister Park will use the upcoming ASEAN-related foreign ministers' meetings to highlight the resilience of South Korea's democracy and the new administration's commitment to prioritizing ASEAN, while also discussing ways to bolster practical cooperation with the region," foreign ministry spokesperson Lee Jae-woong stated during a press briefing. Park steps in as a representative in place of the foreign minister, as South Korea has yet to formally appoint a new top diplomat. The foreign minister nominee, Cho Hyun, is set for a parliamentary confirmation hearing, though the date remains unannounced.
It is yet to be determined whether Park will conduct bilateral talks with top representatives from other participating countries, as such discussions on the sidelines are customarily held between officials of equivalent rank. Additionally, there is curiosity regarding North Korea's potential participation at a high level in the ARF. Malaysia cut diplomatic ties with North Korea following the 2017 assassination of Kim Jong-nam, the elder brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Since 2019, North Korea has dispatched its ambassadors stationed in the ASEAN member state that chaired the forum for that year.