1. During her visit to New York for the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met with Foreign Minister Aloysio Nunes of Brazil at the UN headquarters on September 22. In their meeting, the two top diplomats discussed an extensive range of matters, including the North Korean nuclear issue; the search operations for the crew of the Stellar Daisy vessel; ways to enhance bilateral relations and substantive cooperation, such as under the proposed trade agreement (TA) between the Republic of Korea and Mercosur (Common Market of the South); and ways to work together on the international stage.

2. With regard to the sixth nuclear test by North Korea, Minister Kang extended appreciation to the Brazilian government for consistently supporting the ROK government’s position in terms of the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue, asking for Brazil’s continued attention to and support for the efforts to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula and peacefully resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.

3. With respect to the search operations for the crew of the Stellar Daisy vessel, Minister Kang, expressing gratitude to the Brazilian government for its assistance and cooperation, asked it to facilitate further search operations on and around the Brazil-controlled islands near the accident site.

4. Minister Kang expressed her confidence that with the pace of the economic growth recently picking up again in Brazil, the ROK and Brazil will see their economic cooperation increase continuously. She went on to ask Brazil, the current chair of Mercosur, to actively exercise leadership toward an early conclusion of the proposed ROK-Mercosur TA.

5. The ROK-Brazil foreign ministerial meeting on September 22, the first of its kind since the inauguration of the two top diplomats, is seen to have played a role in the efforts to step up coordination on the North Korean nuclear issue and for a closer substantive cooperation between the ROK and Brazil.


* unofficial translation