1. Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se met with his Malaysian counterpart Anifah bin Haji Aman in New York on June 15. In their meeting, the two top diplomats discussed major bilateral issues of mutual concern; Japan’s nomination for the inscription of sites of its Meiji industrial revolution on the world heritage list; the situations on the Korean Peninsula, including the North Korean nuclear issue; and ways to work together at ASEAN and the UN Security Council.

* Malaysia is serving as the chair country of ASEAN and a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in 2015.

2. The two Ministers noted with appreciation that an ASEAN-Republic of Korea Commemorative Summit and an ROK-Malaysia summit had successfully been held in December 2014, with their follow-up measures being implemented in a smooth manner.

◦ The two top diplomats agreed to consult closely with each other for a visit to Malaysia by President Park Geun-hye to materialize.

3. Minister Yun expressed hope to see globally competitive Korean companies take part in the Malaysia-Singapore bullet train project and thereby take the ROK-Malaysia economic cooperative ties a notch higher. He asked for Minister Anifah’s special attention and support in this regard.

◦ In response, Minister Anifah, displaying confidence in Korean companies’ competitiveness, voiced expectation for them to participate in the bidding as soon as possible.

4. With regard to Japan’s nomination for the inscription of sites of its Meiji industrial revolution on the world heritage list, which will be up for discussion at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) set to take place in Bonn, Germany, from June 28 through July 8, Minister Yun spoke in detail about the position of the international community, including the majority of the WHC member states, as well as that of the ROK government. He asked for support of Malaysia, a member state of the WHC, in this regard.

5. Minister Yun explained in detail the situation on the Korean Peninsula, including the latest developments in the North Korean nuclear issue and inter-Korean relations, and highlighted the need for the international community to send to the country a consistent and resolute message urging it to abandon its nuclear ambitions. He asked Malaysia, the ASEAN chair, to play an active role in this regard at ASEAN Regional Forum and other ASEAN-related meetings.

◦ In addition, the two sides agreed to consult closely with each other if and when the UN Security Council holds a meeting on North Korea issues.

6. The ROK-Malaysia Foreign Ministers’ meeting, held in the year marking the 55th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relations, served as an opportunity to discuss in depth matters of mutual concern and thereby to further strengthen their close cooperative ties.


* unofficial translation