1.   Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ban Ki-moon, held the ROK-Canada Foreign Ministers' Meeting with 
Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pierre Pettigrew, in Montreal on September 28, 2004, for a wide range 
of discussions on ways to promote the friendly and cooperative ties between the two countries.

2.   The two ministers expressed their satisfaction that the bilateral relations have been enhanced in all 
areas including economy, society and culture since the establishment of the Special Partnership in 1993, 
and agreed to strengthen high-level exchanges between the two countries, including the possibility of 
holding the ROK-Canada summit during the upcoming APEC Summit in November this year.

3.   The two ministers also exchanged views on the recent development on the Korean peninsula and in 
Northeast Asia including the Six-Party Talks and the ROK's policy toward North Korea, and agreed to 
strengthen cooperation in the international arena including cooperation regarding the ROK's nuclear-material 
experiments.

4.   In particular, they noted that up to 200,000 annual people-to-people exchanges between the two 
countries and over 170,000 Koreans living in Canada constitute a bridge for the promotion of the bilateral 
relationship, and discussed to increase the mutual exchange quota of the Working Holiday Program from 
500 per year to 800 per year for the promotion of mutual understanding between the youths of the two 
countries.

5.   The two ministers also noted that the bilateral economic and trade relations are enhanced through 
various private and official channels including the "Special Partnership Working Group“, and discussed 
ways to promote the economic and trade relations including the possibility of an ROK-Canada FTA.

6.   Minister Ban's visit was the first visit to Canada by an ROK foreign minister in 10 years since 1994, which 
provided an opportunity to uplift the ROK-Canada Special Partnership onto a higher level.  With the upcoming 
50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties in 2013, the ROK and Canada will exert joint efforts 
find ways to strengthen substantial cooperation between the two countries in the mid- to long-term such as 
the expansion of high-level exchanges between the two countries.

                                                                  Spokesperson of MOFAT

* unofficial translation