1. On September 16, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha attended the 25th International Association of Korean Lawyers (IAKL) Annual Conference, which brought together some 450 Korean lawyers from home and abroad.

※ The IAKL is a non-profit organization founded in 1988 to build a cooperative network among Korean lawyers across the world as well as their capacity. It holds plenary and academic conferences in the Republic of Korea and the United States on an annual and rotational basis.

2. At its Annual Conference, the IAKL, which has played a role in building a cooperative network among Korean lawyers working across the world and in strengthening their capabilities, reviewed its achievements over the past 25 years and sought a blueprint for its future. At the event, Minister Kang informed the participants of the diplomatic environment since the launch of the new ROK government and its foreign policy direction, and asked for their attention and support in that regard.

° In particular, the Minister noted that the ROK government is focused on seeking a closer coordination with the international community on the North Korean nuclear issue; diversifying its diplomacy; broadening its diplomatic horizon; and implementing people-centered, “public opinion-reflected diplomacy.”

3. In addition, the Minister commended the Korean lawyers for their great contributions to and roles in the enhancement of Koreans’ standing in the global community and the establishment of Korean communities as exemplary groups in many countries. She went on to ask that they continue serving as bridges between their homeland and host countries by using their legal expertise.


* unofficial translation